An 11-year-old girl was detained for the second time at the Bimberi youth detention centre earlier this year, ACT Human Rights Commissioner Helen Watchirs has revealed.
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Dr Watchirs, who is pushing for the ACT government to raise the criminal age of responsibility, said the girl had also been held in Bimberi last year.
Dr Watchirs said the government should raise the age a child can be criminally charged to 12.
"This is not theoretical. There are 11 year olds being locked up in Bimberi in Canberra," Dr Watchirs said.
The girl would have been sharing Bimberi with offenders as old as at least 18.
"We've said three times the age of criminal responsibility needs to be raised," Dr Watchirs said.
The Community Services Directorate, which runs the youth prison, would not confirm whether an 11-year-old girl had been detained, for how long and under what charge.
Late last year, an 11-year-old girl spent a weekend in detention before being released after the chief magistrate expressed frustration at the lack of options available.
At the time, Chief Magistrate Lorraine Walker said it was a choice between sending the girl home, where the offending had occurred, or sending her to Bimberi.
Ms Walker said the ACT's criminal laws refer to a "therapeutic protection place" to send children as an alternative to jail, but no so such facility existed in Canberra.
It is not known whether this is the same girl referred to by Dr Watchirs.
Dr Watchirs' comments comes after former-attorney general Simon Corbell called for the criminal age to be lifted to 14 years old. Proponents argue children under 14 are not able to mentally comprehend actions and consequences.
The ACT's shadow attorney-general Jeremy Hanson said any change would have to be made as part of a nationally consistent approach.
"If it were to be raised, I can't see why that would be an argument to do so in Canberra but not in Queensland," Mr Hanson said.
He also said because of the ACT being an island in NSW, there might be complications with charging children across the border in Queanbeyan.
"I haven't been convinced but that's not saying that's a closed door either," Mr Hanson said.
"We need to make sure we're not changing the age of criminal responsibility for one section of the community, where the issue might be not addressing social issues efficiently."
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Speaking to an estimates committee recently, Attorney-General Gordon Ramsay said the government had not yet formed a view on raising the age.
"I know that is is being raised with my counterparts in other jurisdictions," Mr Ramsay said.
"I have not had conversations with them at this stage and I think it is too early to say, for example, whether it would be something for the Council of Attorneys-General meeting."
Dr Watchirs said young children needed early intervention rather than a criminal justice solution.
