Aboriginal Youth in the criminal justice system: is systemic discrimination influencing custody decisions

The over-representation of Aboriginal people in the Criminal Justice System (CJS) is a considerable problem that has been present in Canada for many years and is extreme with Aboriginal youth populations. One theory of over-representation is the presence of systemic discrimination in judicial decision making. The present study examined sentencing decisions of open or closed custody and how race, offence variables and risk factors of reoffending may have affected these decisions. The study focused on 441 young offenders residing in four custody facilities in Vancouver, BC. The results indicated that systemic discrimination was not present in sentencing decisions as race was not found to be a significant predictor of the custody decision. Future research should examine other areas of the CJS, such as police procedures, to see if systemic discrimination is present and to explore how this may be affecting the presence of Aboriginal people in the CJS.