12/11/2025

The Victorian Government’s ‘Adult Crime, Adult Time’ proposal will not work to reduce crime in the state, says the Australian Lawyers Alliance.

“All of the research, and it is all, shows that jailing children, and particularly for lengthy periods, increases recidivism. In fact, more than eight out of 10 children who spend time in custody reoffend within two years,” said Greg Barns SC, criminal justice spokesperson for the Australian Lawyers Alliance (ALA).

“We can agree that we want a safe state, for everyone. However, locking children up does not address the root causes of their offending and will not achieve that end.

“Research from the Australian Institute for Health and Welfare shows that of young people released from sentenced detention 70% returned within six months and 84% within 12 months. Threats of jail time do not work as a deterrence for children for a variety of reasons including brain development.

“We are very alarmed to see that under these proposed new laws maximum jail sentences will be raised from three years to life in the case of aggravated home invasions and aggravated carjacking. This is extraordinary. Life imprisonment is the maximum sentence for murder.”

The ALA is also concerned the state is breaching its duty of care to children in custody through increasing harm.

The UN Special Rapporteur on Torture has found that even very short periods of detention can undermine a child’s psychological and physical well-being and compromise cognitive development. Children deprived of liberty are at a heightened risk of suffering depression and anxiety and frequently exhibit symptoms consistent with post-traumatic stress disorder. Reports on the effects of depriving children of liberty have found higher rates of suicide and self-harm, mental disorder and developmental problems.

“These laws will result in serious harm to children,” said Mr Barns SC. “It is very disappointing that the government has not learnt the lessons of history - the evidence of the damage done by governments over many decades to children in institutions.

“It is also a bad deal for taxpayers as it costs thousands of dollars a day to keep a child in detention.

“The proposed new laws will not work to rehabilitate or deter children from future criminal behaviour. If anything, they will cause further trauma and entrench young people into cycles of offending.

“This is a terrible outcome for the young people in Victoria and for the broader community in the long term. We urge the Government to be bold and invest to alternate justice solutions.”