Mr. Speaker, Julian Waites was a boy who found himself in trouble with the law. He faced over 40 charges in youth court, mostly theft related. He played the Young Offenders Act like a harp knowing precisely which strings he could pull and when.
His mother, Mary, desperately wanted the courts to punish her son so he would be deterred from repeat offending. She wanted the courts to give him a jail sentence, send him to work camps, anything that would make the young boy think twice about repeat offending.
Julian was incorrigible. He resisted help from his family and the law allowed him to continue his life of crime. Today Julian Waites faces charges of sexual assault, assault with a weapon, and uttering threats.
Mrs. Waites largely blames the inadequacies of the Young Offenders Act for her son's current troubles. He was not punished for the crimes he committed as a youth and his mother says the Young Offenders Act actually encouraged him to repeat offend. Mrs. Waites is convinced that a tougher Young Offenders Act might have given her son a chance at a normal life.