Some Perspective on Youth Crime

There’s an election looming in New Zealand. One way you can tell is by the near-constant media headlines about the supposed youth crime wave, ram raids, and political parties of every stripe announcing “tough on crime” policies in response.

These announcements make good sound bites. But are the proposed policies actually good for the troubled young people they’re aimed at?

Some perspective: For more than a decade youth crime nationwide has been tracking downward. The latest April 2023 Youth Justice Indicators Summary Report shows that between 2010/11 and 2020/21 the overall offending rates for children and young people fell by 65% and 63% respectively. A similar decrease has been seen among Māori, who continue to be over-represented in the youth justice system for a host of complex reasons.

Yes, there has been an increase in youth ram raid offences since 2021 and there is good evidence that this has been driven by post-Covid upheaval, the cost of living crisis, and copycatting social media antics. But NZ Police Statistics show that adult crime has increased as well since the pandemic. For New Zealand as a whole, theft has increased by 25.2%, while acts intended to cause injury (i.e. assault) have increased by 19.7%. It’s interesting that these adult statistics don’t get nearly as many headlines.

Here at the Y we rely on strengths- and evidence-based approaches in our work with rangatahi, and we share the concerns of several experts quoted recently in the media that some of the recent wave of policy announcements aimed at youth are lacking in both.

Children’s Commissioner Judge Frances Eivers has said she is “frustrated” to see the Government’s plans to build more “prison-like facilities” for young offenders – the exact opposite of what she and successive commissioners before her have called for in asking they be shut down.

Auckland University criminologist Dr Ronald Kramar decried the reliance on “punitive interventions that make people worse”, while clinical psychologist Dr Julia Ioane advocates for a holistic approach that addresses poverty and is family- and community-focused.

A holistic approach is something we at the Y can get behind, because it is already at the centre of our mahi with young people. We see first-hand how focusing on and building a young person’s strengths can result in real gains in their confidence and belief in their abilities. We know that connections to culture and community provide a sense of belonging that is essential to rangatahi. We know the importance of building the skills of parents, caregivers and others who support rangatahi. All of this and more is how we “invest in the next generation”.

We understand the desire to hold offenders – both youth and adult – accountable for their actions. Crime victims deserve justice. Young people deserve second chances. But we wonder whether the current “tough on crime” rhetoric is designed to deliver justice and second chances, or votes.