A parental supervision order may be made in proceedings where a child is found guilty of an offence. It may be made in the context where the court is satisfied that the child’s parents’ wilful failure to take care or control of the child has contributed to the child’s offending. The order may be up to six months in duration. The court will appoint a […]
The Childrens Act provides for a range of community sanctions. The court must be satisfied having regard to the probation or other report and having heard evidence including the parent, guardian or other adult present with the child, that the community sanction is the most appropriate way to deal with the matter. The court must explain to the child why the order is being made […]
The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, adopted in 1989 has been widely classified, provides for the rights of children deprived of their liberty and due process rights for children suspected of or accused of having committed a criminal offence. The Convention provides for a supervisory body, the Committee on the Rights of the Child, consisting of independent experts selected by States. […]
Family Welfare Conference A Children and Family Welfare conference may be held on the direction of the Children’s Court or at the initiative of the Health Authority (HSE). The Health Authority (HSE) appoints a person as coordinator to convene the family welfare conference and he or she acts as chairman. The purpose of a family welfare conference is to decide whether a child is in […]
A court dealing with charges against children must have regard to the principle that children have rights and freedom before the law equal to those enjoyed by adults and, in particular, a right to be heard and to participate in any proceedings of the court that can affect them. They must respect the principle that criminal proceedings shall not be used solely to provide any […]
Community Sanctions include any one or more of the following: a Community Service Order; a Day Centre Order; a Probation Order; a Training or Activities Order; a Probation Intensive Supervision Order; a Probation Residential Supervision Order; a Suitable Person (care and supervision) Order; a Mentor (family support) Order; a Restriction of Movement Order; a Dual Order. Where a Court has considered a Probation Officer’s report […]
A Mentor (Family Support) Order is facilitated through the Le Cheile Monitoring Project. It is a community sanction with additional requirements by which the Court assigns a person, who may be a relative to help and advise the child and support the child’s family to monitor overall behaviour, in order to help the child avoid further offending. The order may be made for up to […]
The Children’s Act restricts the imprisonment of children. Under the prior law, a child under 15 may not be imprisoned but a young person between 15 and 17 may be imprisoned if the court certifies he is of unruly or depraved character and not fit to be held in a place of detention otherwise available. Its constitutionality was upheld in a challenge in 1991. The […]
The Children’s Act 2001 increases the age of criminal responsibility to 12 years. —A child under 12 years of age shall not be charged with an offence. This does not apply to a child aged 10 or 11 years who is charged with murder, manslaughter, rape, rape or aggravated sexual assault. The rebuttable presumption under any rule of law, namely, that a child who is […]
Detention Centres A child, who is convicted of an offence, cannot receive a period of detention which would be greater than the period of detention or imprisonment that an adult could receive for the same offence. The Children’s (Amendment) Act 2015 deals with the detention of children. The three children detention centres in the State comprise Trinity House, Oberstown Boys and Oberstown Girls, which are […]