This toolkit was developed by the Toronto Youth Equity Strategy.

HERE’S HOW THE AUTHORS DESCRIBE THIS TOOLKIT:

This resource is provided for Toronto-area youth workers, teachers, and other professionals supporting young people interacting with the criminal justice system. Its objective is to aid these professionals in understanding the criminal justice process to better support the young people they are working with. Criminal charges can result in very serious short-term and long-term consequences. It is very important that young people consult with a lawyer about any criminal matters.

There are some ways that frontline workers can assist a young person dealing with criminal charges. This resource contains specific information on how youth-serving staff can help support young people as they navigate the criminal justice system.

This resource describes the criminal justice process for young people between the ages of 12-17 years (youth) and young people over the age of 18 years (adults). Some of these young people are considered adults by the legal system. The law treats youth differently from adults; they have different legal rights, different legal language is used and the law is interpreted differently depending on whether the young person is under 18 years old at the time of the offence. This resource will sometimes refer to young people as the accused (someone who is charged with a crime), but will explain when the law or legal process changes depending on whether the young person is a youth or an adult.