Sentencing young adult offenders (typically 18-25 years)
When considering a custodial or community sentence for a young adult (typically 18-25 years), the court should normally ask the Probation Service for a pre-sentence report.
Courts should be aware that age and/or lack of maturity can affect the offender’s responsibility for the offence and the effect of the sentence on the offender.
Further information on age and/or lack of maturity can also be taken into account by courts when sentencing a young adult (typically 18-25).
When sentencing a young adult offender, courts should consider that the available evidence suggests:
- There is a risk of young adults being perceived as more mature than they actually are. This can lead to their age and any related needs or disadvantage not being taken into proper consideration during the sentencing process. Research shows that young adults from an ethnic minority background are at particular risk of this.
- Young adulthood is generally a formative period of social transition and custodial sentences in particular could interfere with their education and consequent life prospects. Education, work or training may be critical to a young adult’s career development which is a key factor in the prevention of reoffending. Courts should place particular emphasis on rehabilitation as a purpose of sentencing for young adults.
- Young adults may seem less remorseful than they are and may mask or be unable to fully express their emotions because they are still maturing and developing emotional awareness skills. This is particularly relevant given the prevalence of neuro-disability among young adults in the criminal justice system compared to the general population.
- Young adults in the criminal justice system have disproportionately disadvantaged backgrounds compared to their peers in the general population. This may include adverse childhood experiences and experiences of the care system, disrupted accommodation or education, exposure to abuse, neglect, trauma and loss. Some young adult offenders have multiple disadvantages or needs which can increase the complexity of their circumstances that will need to be taken into consideration during sentencing.
- There are high levels of mental disorders, developmental disorders, and neurological impairments among young adults in the criminal justice system compared to their peers in the general population. This means that they may struggle more with behaviour typically linked to offending and this can increase their vulnerability to bullying, peer pressure, coercion or manipulation.
- The disadvantages young adult offenders face in the criminal justice system may be compounded for young adult offenders from an ethnic minority background. For some offences, there is evidence of a disparity in sentence outcomes for offenders from some ethnic minority backgrounds. See chapter 8 of the Equal Treatment Bench Book for further information.