Hundreds of children have been denied bail and held in Queensland's juvenile detention centres after controversial youth crime reforms came into effect in April, new police data shows.More than 700 children have been held in custody since April under youth justice reformsMore community support must be put in place to keep children from reoffending, police say
Department of Youth Justice senior executive director Michael Drane said about 230 young people were currently being held in juvenile detention – 100 more than the same time last year. "We're only actually talking about a couple of hundred young people across the state who commit almost half the offending in youth justice in any one year."He said long-term trends still showed a decline in the number of children entering the justice system, but those children who do enter the system were often already at a serious disadvantage with a low level of comprehension and a lack of family or community support.
No 16- or 17-year-old child is currently fitted with a GPS tracker, another reform introduced earlier in the year which was criticised by youth justice advocates.Ms Scanlon said the next focus for the youth crime taskforce was to increase the support for young children who had been through the juvenile justice system and divert them away from further criminal behaviour.
Great news. Lock a few hundred more up and the problem should be solved.