Search

Trends in the seriousness of youth crime in Canada from 1984 to 2011 are assessed by analysing changes over time in the mix of offences for which young people have been reported by police as chargeable. Four indicators of seriousness are used: Statistics Canada crime seriousness weights, the proportion of youth accused of an indictable offence, a fivefold classification of offences; and a selection of high volume offences. All four analyses clearly indicate a substantial downward trend over the period in the overall seriousness of police-reported youth crime. The decline in seriousness is mainly due to a very large decrease in the proportion of youth accused of the serious offence of break and enter and a correspondingly large increase in the proportion accused of the minor offences of common assault, cannabis possession, and offences against the administration of justice. The proportion of chargeable youth accused of major offences against the person has increased substantially relative to its level in 1984, but it remains low compared to property and other offenders. Thus, reported youth crime in Canada has become proportionally more violent but less serious overall. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Research on youth auto theft has been based mostly on young offenders who have been caught. The present study involved a sample of 779 youth attending 13 schools across BC, Canada. A sizable proportion (n = 184) of this sample from a general population had thought of or engaged in auto theft behaviours, from thinking about stealing a vehicle, through riding in a stolen vehicle, to being caught stealing a vehicle. This group differed from youth who had neither thought of nor engaged in any form of auto theft in terms of some demographic characteristics, their beliefs about the factors that prevent them from auto theft, their perceptions of young auto thieves’ characteristics and motivations, and their perceptions of the problem and prevention of youth auto theft. These findings have implications for targeting and developing youth auto theft prevention and intervention strategies. The findings also highlight the importance of studying auto theft in the general population. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]