The Supreme Court of Canada considered whether general deterrence is a principle of sentencing under the Youth Criminal Justice Act (YCJA).
The Court held that the YCJA introduced a new sentencing regime that deliberately excluded general deterrence as a factor in youth sentencing.
The Court also held that section 42(2)(o) of the YCJA does not require a sentencing judge to impose at least two-thirds of a sentence in custody and one-third under supervision, granting the judge discretion to determine the appropriate length of the custody and supervision portions.
Both appeals were dismissed.