Police wouldn't be able to arrest young rioters - or stop them doing it again - under Alliance's proposed law changes: Burrows
Police would not have been able to investigate a 13 year old boy arrested and bailed during recent disorder in Londonderry under proposals from the Alliance Party, Jon Burrows has said.
The justice minister’s party wants to raise the age at which children are criminally responsible – meaning a child under 14 years old could not be arrested, prosecuted or have their DNA taken by police for offences like rioting.
Naomi Long recently confirmed the ramifications of the changes in response to a question from the Ulster Unionist Party leader – but says her department would not commence any new laws until an “appropriate framework” had been “developed in partnership with key stakeholders”.
Mr Burrows has opposed raising the minimum age of criminal responsibility (MACR) from 10, as it is currently. Mrs Long wants to raise the threshold by four years, citing the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child’s that the MACR should be at least 14 years of age.
On Tuesday, the PSNI said that a 13-year-old boy was arrested on suspicion of riotous behaviour and has since been released on bail to allow for further police enquiries, following disorder in the Bishop Street area of the Londonderry.
Reacting to the news, the former senior police officer turned politician said: “Under the proposal by Alliance to raise the minimum age of criminal responsibility to 14, the PSNI would not even be able to investigate let alone arrest this child or use bail conditions to prevent him rioting again.
“The vast majority of young people are not prosecuted - they are in fact put through diversionary schemes. Depriving the police the ability to investigate and arrest young people in this situation helps no one - not the child and not the residents being showered with bricks and petrol bombs”.
Party colleague Doug Beattie said that “nobody wants children criminalised, our Youth Justice Agency works hard not to”.
The UUP justice spokesperson added: “However, if proposals to raise MACR to 14 are agreed this lad can’t even be arrested to investigate. Now apply that to sexual crimes”.
The justice minister says the proposal currently on the table would exclude cases of “rape and assault by penetration”.
Minister Long recently said that that “the arrest and prosecution of children following any potential increase in MACR in Northern Ireland will depend on what arrangements are ultimately put in place, including any exceptions for certain offences”.
She added: “There are currently two amendments tabled to the Justice Bill in respect of raising the MACR. The first proposes an increase from the current age of 10 years to 14 years with exceptions for the following four offences: murder; manslaughter; rape and assault by penetration. The second amendment proposes an increase to 16 years with no exceptions”
She said if either of these amendments are supported by the Assembly, they would prevent a child under the threshold from being arrested or prosecuted provided the alleged offence was not covered by exemptions – and since they cannot be arrested, no DNA sampling would take place.
The justice minister said “should any increase to MACR be supported, my Department would not commence the necessary legislative provisions until such a time as an appropriate framework for addressing such behaviour had been developed in partnership with key stakeholders”.
The DUP will also oppose any changes to the current law, arguing that children aged 10 and above are capable of distinguishing between right and wrong and understanding the seriousness of criminal behaviour.
TUV MLA Timothy Gaston has said that changing a system which already works would result in “disaster”.
Alliance MLA Sian Mulholland – who has brought the proposal to amend the justice act to the Assembly – has said that “scientific research and lived experience” shows that 10 year olds “don’t have the emotional maturity or the intellectual capacity to fully understand the consequences of their actions, nor legal proceedings, the roles of judges, lawyers, or the meaning of a ‘plea’”.
The North Antrim representative said her amendment to Justice Minister Naomi Long’s Justice Bill will result in a law which “will follow global trends and ensure that children get the support and rehabilitation they need, instead of being criminalised and having their education and job prospects scuppered at such young ages”.