Justice committee  Two hundred and fifty thousand.

Justice committee  Approximately 20,000.

Justice committee  The rates would be around 80% for first nations and Métis. Probably 80% of the people who are incarcerated are of first nations or Métis background, a vast overrepresentation.

Justice committee  No, it's overrepresented in the aboriginal population. It's not the same as—

Justice committee  Yes, many more young offenders who are charged come from an aboriginal background.

Justice committee  That's a tough call. In my line of work, I come after the crime has been committed, so we're dealing with the people who have already committed the crime. We have to work with what we face and then try to deal with it. I don't know if there is an answer for that. I really don't k

Justice committee  No, I think there has to be some kind of intent. I believe in that fundamental philosophy of law.

Justice committee  I agree with everything that everybody has said about the impulses of youth, which I think has caused some of the problems. And I would like to see judges have some discretion when they're dealing with youthful offenders. A lot of times I don't base my thoughts on a one-time in

Justice committee  I would expect that it would get raised to adult court. One was 17 and one was 18, so they're very close. One is an adult; one would probably be raised. I think, and I may be speaking out of line, our society is so desensitized to what goes on with violence; you hear about stuf

Justice committee  No, the person hasn't been sent to an adult court yet.

Justice committee  Yet--it's still being decided by a prosecutor.

Justice committee  No, that's why I'm careful. This is all alleged, and it's still before the courts, this case I'm talking about.

Justice committee  I can only speak for the Saskatoon Police Service. Any time we come into contact with anybody, we enter that into our data banks so that we have a record of it. I think it's useful for us in our work. If there are future occasions where we come across that youth, we know the back

Justice committee  Thank you.

Justice committee  Thank you, Mr. Chair. My name is Clive Weighill and I am the chief of police for the city of Saskatoon. I'd like to thank the committee for allowing me to provide testimony today. Youth crime, with its possible solutions, is a very serious and much debated issue in Saskatchewa