ACT backs raising criminal responsibility age but not too far, focus groups found

But only a minority of Canberrans know about the government's proposed changes to the age so the reform does not come as a surprise.

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people were the strongest supporters of reform, with broad support for the age to rise to at least 15 or 16, and some support for it to increase to 17.

A Kantar Public research report on community attitudes to the change was handed to the Legislative Assembly's justice and community safety standing committee.

The committee on Friday released the report of its inquiry into the government's bill to raise the age of criminal responsibility initially to 12 and then to 14 with carve outs for some serious crimes, making 23 recommendations.

The government should first raise the age of criminal responsibility to 12 and then to 14 as it has planned as long as a series of amendments are made to the bill, the committee said.

Children below the age of criminal responsibility cannot be found to have committed a criminal offence.

Andrew Braddock, the Greens' committee member, said exceptions when the age is raised to 14 should be subject to a sunset clause, in line with a recommendation of the ACT Human Rights Commission.

The commission had told the inquiry carve outs were inconsistent with the rights protected in the ACT's human rights law.

"The science is very clear, and so was the evidence before the committee, children aged 12 or 13 are unable to form criminal intent regardless of the offence," Mr Braddock said.

"We know that children aged between 10 and 13 years who engage in criminal behaviour often do so because of trauma, abuse, or unmet needs. The right thing to do for these children, and for the community, is to divert them away from the criminal justice system and onto a therapeutic path."

A sunset clause would mean the carve outs for serious crimes expire after five years except if the government at the time decides to retain them.

The ACT Greens, which includes Attorney-General Shane Rattenbury, had publicly opposed keeping exceptions for violent crimes - including murder and sexual assault - when the age is raised further.

Peter Cain, the Liberal committee member, dissented from a recommendation to ultimately raise the age to 14, and instead recommended the government review the impact of raising the age to 12 two years after the bill is passed.

Mr Cain said: "If (say) a 14-year-old under a raised [minimum age of criminal responsibility] cannot be held criminally responsible for one type of crime, it is difficult to see why that same individual would be held criminally responsible for another, albeit more serious, crime."

Mr Cain also noted the finding from the Kantar Public report, which found the focus group and interview participants did not believe "being 'nation leading'" was a primary reason for change.

The report found almost everyone involved in the research thought treating 10- and 12-year-old children as criminals was morally wrong and a bad policy response.

"There is generally a reduced empathy for offenders who are older than 12; the reasons for the reform are perceived to be 'weaker' when thinking about older children who are committing crimes; and perceptions can coloured by a feeling that MACR reforms could be about reduced responsibility - which in turn feeds lower empathy when thinking about young offenders," the report said.

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The report said Kantar Public was commissioned by the ACT government in January 2022 to identify public attitudes to changing the age of criminal responsibility and that the company held focus groups and one-on-one interviews with 32 people from the ACT.

"If a decision were taken to lift the minimum age of responsibility to 14 years, it would represent a change for young offenders aged from 10 to 13 years of age," the report said.

"But what our research suggests is that what some in the ACT community are likely to 'hear' is that the reform applies to 14-year-olds (this type of misperception is likely to arise, irrespective of where the MACR 'line' is drawn)."

The ACT government introduced a bill to the Legislative Assembly in May to raise the age to 14 by July 1, 2025 and to 12 years on commencement.

Attorney-General Shane Rattenbury at the time said the two-stage process would allow the government to make changes to the way the justice system handles younger children first.

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