Diversion from Prosecution for Young People in England and Wales − Reconsidering the Mandatory Admission Criteria
| Author | Karen Cushing |
| DOI | 10.1177/1473225414537568 |
| Published date | 01 August 2014 |
| Date | 01 August 2014 |
| Subject Matter | Articles |
Youth Justice
2014, Vol. 14(2) 140 –153
© The Author(s) 2014
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DOI: 10.1177/1473225414537568
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Diversion from Prosecution for
Young People in England and
Wales − Reconsidering the
Mandatory Admission Criteria
Karen Cushing
Abstract
In England and Wales, diversion from formal criminal proceedings in the Youth Court for a young person
who offends is usually only available if an admission to an offence is made. Failure to do so can be an
immediate barrier to diversion, even for very young people who have committed low level offences. This
article considers the complexities of the admission criterion, and explores whether the new provisions for
diversion in the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012 (LASPO) is a lost opportunity
to reconsider whether an admission should be a mandatory prerequisite for diversion.
Keywords
admission, diversion, police interview, youth caution
Introduction
The United Kingdom Coalition Government recognized in the Green Paper Breaking the
Cycle: Effective Punishment, Rehabilitation and Sentencing of Offenders (Ministry of
Justice, 2010) that the rigid out of court disposal system provided by the Crime and
Disorder Act 1998 (CDA) had needlessly drawn too many young people into the criminal
justice system, regardless of their circumstances or the nature of any offence committed.
Given this encouraging recognition, it was anticipated that any subsequent legislation
would re-consider the mandatory pre-conditions for an out of court disposal.
In the event, the resulting legislative initiative, the Legal Aid, Sentencing and
Punishment of Offenders Act 2012 (LASPO), adopted the pre-existing principle that a
young person must first make an admission to the commission of an offence in order to
Corresponding author:
Karen Cushing, c/o Crown Prosecution Service, Thames and Chiltern, Gemini One, Oxford Business Park South,
Oxford, OX4 2LL, UK.
Email: karen.cushing@cps.gsi.gov.uk
537568YJJ0010.1177/1473225414537568Youth JusticeCushing
research-article2014
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