May 18, 2022
Ram raid spree needs society fix
The Children’s Commissioner says harsher penalties and locking up young offenders such as those involved in ram raids isn’t the answer.
Frances Eivers worked as a defence lawyer and judge in South Auckland before being appointed commissioner.
She says youth offending is a complex problem linked to poverty and social deprivation, and Maori are over-represented.
Ram raids would qualify as aggravated robbery, which already carries a 14-year maximum sentence.
“Locking them up for harsher penalties is not going to do them any good and it is not going to do the rest of us any good because it is not addressing the root causes. the issue is not that these rangatahi and mokopuna are offending but why are they offending. How can we look at that, how can we as a nation address that and stop it so everyone benefits,” she says.
Judge Eivers says the brains of young offenders aren’t fully developed and they’re thinking to about how they can fit in with their mates rather than where they will be in 10 years’ time.