Thank you, Mr. Chair. Thank you, everyone, for being here.
I am trying to find a happy medium between protecting the public and fairness in sentencing, and so on. It is not always easy, and I don't envy the job of Crown and defence counsel and judges in these circumstances.
Professor Bala, you talk about the issue of seeking an adult sentence. I want to quote part of your brief, that you provided to us, and I would ask you to explain what you mean by the following:
If the Crown decides not to apply for an adult sentence, then Counsel must inform the youth court that it is not doing so. This provision suggests a disrespect for Crown Counsel and a mistrust that they are properly exercising their prosecutorial discretion in violent cases. This amendment may place Crown counsel in the awkward position of having to put their refusal to seek an adult sentence on the record in every case, and adds to the complexity of the youth court process.
Can you explain why you say that?