South Australian Consolidated Acts South Australian Consolidated Acts3—Objects and statutory policies
(1) The object of this
Act is to secure for youths who offend against the criminal law the care,
correction and guidance necessary for their development into responsible and
useful members of the community and the proper realisation of their potential.
(2) The powers
conferred by this Act are to be directed towards that object with proper
regard to the following statutory policies:
(a) a
youth should be made aware of his or her obligations under the law and of the
consequences of breach of the law;
(c) the
community, and individual members of it, must be adequately protected against
violent or wrongful acts.
(2a) In imposing
sanctions on a youth for illegal conduct—
(a)
regard should be had to the deterrent effect any proposed sanction may have on
the youth; and
(b) if
the sanctions are imposed by a court on a youth who is being dealt with as an
adult (whether because the youth's conduct is part of a pattern of repeated
illegal conduct or for some other reason), regard should be had to—
(i)
the deterrent effect any proposed sanction may have on
other youths; and
(ii)
the balance to be achieved between—
(A) the protection of the community; and
(B) the need to rehabilitate the youth.
(3) Effect is to be
given to the following statutory policies so far as the circumstances of the
individual case allow:
(a)
compensation and restitution should be provided, where appropriate, for
victims of offences committed by youths;
(b)
family relationships between a youth, the youth's parents and other members of
the youth's family should be preserved and strengthened;
(c) a
youth should not be withdrawn unnecessarily from the youth's family
environment;
(d)
there should be no unnecessary interruption of a youth's education or
employment;
(e) a
youth's sense of racial, ethnic or cultural identity should not be impaired.