Dealing with Young Offenders

Abstract

Dealing with young offenders is one of the many concerns of the criminal justice system in any country. Young offenders are those who are over the age of 10 years and under the age of 17 years in Fiji. Due to their age, they are different from adult offenders, and thus the criminal justice system should also deal with them differently. This paper will consider the criminal justice system of Fiji and how it has tried to address the issue of young offenders under the criminal justice system. It will consider who is a young offender, what laws govern young offenders in Fiji and how they are dealt with once they come into contact with the criminal justice system. It will also consider the special protection that has to be provided for young offenders from arrest, investigation, bail stages till prosecution and sentencing stages.