Youth (criminal)
Are you between 12 and 17? Have the police charged you with a crime? You, your parents or your legal guardian can call us. If you qualify, we will help pay for a lawyer to represent you.
If you are in court and you do not have a lawyer, talk to the lawyer at the courthouse (they are called duty counsel) for help. Duty counsel can:
IRCAs are reports that help judges consider how racism, poverty and discrimination have contributed to a Black or racialized person’s interactions with the justice system. The reports are used mainly at the sentencing stage of a trial and they help the judge decide what the sentence should be.
LAO provides funding for IRCAs for people who self-identify as Black or as a member of another racialized community, who:
has a legal aid certificate and has been found guilty of a crime.
is facing jail time of two years or more or is between 12 and 17 and is facing a custodial sentence. A custodial sentence means that the court wants to send you to a youth justice facility or for you to serve your sentence in the community.
If you self-identify as Black, you do not require a court order to get an IRCA. If you self-identify as member of any other racialized community, you require a court order to obtain an IRCA.
To learn more and find out if you are eligible for an IRCA report, visit the Impact of Race and Culture Assessments (IRCAs) page.
