C-525
Second Session, Thirty-ninth Parliament,
56-57 Elizabeth II, 2007-2008
HOUSE OF COMMONS OF CANADA
BILL C-525
An Act to amend the Youth Criminal Justice Act (protection of the public)
first reading, March 12, 2008
Mr. Regan
392086
SUMMARY
This enactment amends the Youth Criminal Justice Act to
(a) specify that the protection of the public is the primary goal of that Act;
(b) repeal the presumption in subsection 29(2) that detention is unnecessary;
(c) amend paragraph 31(5)(a) so that when the designated responsible person is relieved of his or her obligations, some of the young person’s obligations may nevertheless remain in effect; 
(d) amend subsection 31(6) so that the young person may be detained in custody; and
(e) remove the time limit for a young person to attend a non-residential program.
Also available on the Parliament of Canada Web Site at the following address:http://www.parl.gc.ca
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2nd Session, 39th Parliament,
56-57 Elizabeth II, 2007-2008
house of commons of canada
BILL C-525
An Act to amend the Youth Criminal Justice Act (protection of the public)
Her Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate and House of Commons of Canada, enacts as follows:
2002, c. 1
YOUTH CRIMINAL JUSTICE ACT
1. Paragraph 3(1)(a) of the Youth Criminal Justice Act is replaced by the following:
(a) the youth criminal justice system is intended to
(i) ensure public safety,
(ii) prevent crime by addressing the circumstances underlying a young person's offending behaviour,
(iii) rehabilitate young persons who commit offences and reintegrate them into society, and
(iv) ensure that a young person is subject to meaningful consequences for his or her offence
in order to promote the protection of the public;
2. Subsection 29(2) of the Act is replaced by the following:
Detention presumed unnecessary
(2) In considering whether the detention of a young person is necessary for the protection or safety of the public under paragraph 515(10)(b) of the Criminal Code, a youth justice court or a justice shall presume that detention is not necessary unless the young person
(a) is charged with a violent offence or an offence that otherwise endangered the public by creating a substantial likelihood of serious bodily harm to another person;
(b) has been found guilty of failing to comply with non-custodial sentences or conditions of release; or
(c) is charged with an indictable offence for which an adult would be liable to imprisonment for a term of more than two years and has a history that indicates a pattern of offences under this Act or the Young Offenders Act, chapter Y-1 of the Revised Statutes of Canada, 1985.
Danger to public
(3) If the youth justice court or the justice finds that none of paragraphs (2)(a) to (c) apply, the court or justice shall not detain the young person unless the court or justice is satisfied that there is a substantial likelihood, having regard to all of the relevant factors, including any pending charges against the young person, that the young person will, if released from custody, commit a violent offence or an offence that otherwise endangers the public by creating a substantial likelihood of serious bodily harm to another person.
3. (1) Paragraph 31(5)(a) of the Act is replaced by the following:
(a) make an order relieving the person of the obligations undertaken under subsection (3); and
(2) Subsection 31(6) of the Act is replaced by the following:
Effect of arrest
(6) If a young person is arrested in accord- ance with a warrant issued under paragraph (5)(b), the young person shall be taken before a youth justice court judge or a justice without delay and detained in custody under section 515 of the Criminal Code. 
4. Paragraph 42(2)(m) of the Act is replaced by the following:
(m) subject to subsection (3) (agreement of provincial director) and section 54, order the young person to attend a non-residential program approved by the provincial director, at the times and on the terms that the court may fix;
COORDINATING AMENDMENTS
Bill C-25
5. (1) Subsections (2) to (4) apply if Bill C-25, introduced in the 2nd session of the 39th Parliament and entitled An Act to amend the Youth Criminal Justice Act (the “other Act”), receives royal assent.
(2) If section 1 of the other Act comes into force before section 2 of this Act, then that section 2 is repealed and paragraph 29(2)(c) of the Youth Criminal Justice Act, as enacted by section 1 of the other Act, is replaced by the following :
(c) the young person is charged with an indictable offence for which an adult would be liable to imprisonment for a term of more than two years and has a history that indicates a pattern of offences under this Act or the Young Offenders Act, chapter Y-1 of the Revised Statutes of Canada, 1985.
(3) If section 2 of this Act comes into force before section 1 of the other Act, that section 1 is repealed.
(4) If section 1 of the other Act comes into force on the same day as section 2 of this Act, then that section 2 is deemed to have come into force before section 1 of the other Act, and that section 1 is repealed.
COMING INTO FORCE
Order in council
6. This Act comes into force on a day to be fixed by order of the Governor in Council.
Published under authority of the Speaker of the House of CommonsAvailable from:Publishing and Depository ServicesPublic Works and Government Services Canada