If a child has been detained, telephone the chambers now. The first hours matter more here than in any other kind of case, and the protections a child is entitled to are frequently not applied unless someone insists on them.

What follows is a general explanation of how the system is meant to work.

The framework

The Juvenile Justice System Act 2018 governs children in conflict with the law in Pakistan. A juvenile is a person who had not attained the age of eighteen at the time of the offence.

The Act is built around a different premise from the adult criminal law: rehabilitation rather than punishment, with the child's welfare a governing consideration throughout.

It provides, among other things, for Juvenile Justice Committees, for diversion away from formal prosecution, for children to be dealt with by designated juvenile courts, and for protections in custody, investigation and trial.

Age is the first question

Everything turns on it, and it is contested more often than families expect.

Age is determined by reference to available records — birth certificate, school records, CNIC or the family register, and where those are unavailable or disputed, a medical age determination.

Two practical points.

Produce documents immediately. A birth certificate or school record produced on day one can settle the question before it becomes a dispute.

Age is assessed at the date of the offence, not the date of arrest or trial. A person who has since turned eighteen may still fall within the Act for an earlier offence.

If there is doubt, it should be resolved in favour of treating the person as a child, and the question can be raised at any stage.

Protections in custody and investigation

A child is entitled to be dealt with differently, and these are the points at which the law is most often not followed in practice:

  • Separation from adult detainees
  • Notification to parents or guardian, and to the probation officer
  • Legal assistance, at state expense where the family cannot afford it
  • Investigation conducted by an officer of appropriate rank and in an appropriate manner
  • No handcuffing or fetters save in defined circumstances
  • Protection of identity — reporting that identifies a child in proceedings is restricted
  • Proceedings in camera, rather than in open court

If a child is being held with adults, or the family has not been informed, or no lawyer has been provided, say so immediately and in writing. These are not courtesies.

Bail

The Act contains provisions more favourable to children than the ordinary bail regime, including in relation to offences that would otherwise be non-bailable, and having regard to the child's age and welfare.

Where bail is not granted, a child should ordinarily be placed in a rehabilitation or observation facility rather than in an ordinary prison.

Move for bail immediately. Detention harms a child disproportionately, and the longer it continues the harder the wider consequences — schooling, family, mental health — become to reverse.

Diversion

This is the most useful and least used part of the framework.

Diversion allows a matter, particularly a minor or less serious offence, to be dealt with outside formal prosecution — through the Juvenile Justice Committee, with outcomes that may include restitution, counselling, community service or supervision, rather than a trial and a conviction.

For a first offence by a child, diversion is very often the right outcome and it should be actively pursued rather than waited for. It avoids the record that would otherwise follow the child into education, employment and any future visa application.

Trial and afterwards

Where the matter proceeds, it goes before a juvenile court, in camera, with the child's welfare a governing consideration in sentencing.

The Act restricts certain punishments in respect of children, and the emphasis is on rehabilitative disposal.

Afterwards, the restrictions on disclosure of the record matter a great deal for the child's future. Ensure they are observed.

For parents: what to do, and not do

Do:

  • Telephone a lawyer immediately — before any statement is given
  • Take documents proving age to the police station
  • Insist the child is separated from adult detainees
  • Insist on being present, and on the probation officer being notified
  • Keep a written record of times, officers, and what was said
  • Get medical attention documented if the child has been harmed

Do not:

  • Let the child be questioned without a lawyer, in the belief that cooperation will resolve it quickly
  • Sign anything you have not read
  • Attempt to settle privately with a complainant before understanding what is alleged
  • Assume that because the child is young, nothing serious can follow

Where the child is the victim

The same statute is not the route, but the concern is the same. Offences against children carry their own provisions and protections, and proceedings should be conducted so that the child is not further harmed by the process. Take advice on how the complaint is framed and how the child's evidence is taken. See how to get an FIR registered.

How the firm can help

We act for children in conflict with the law: securing the protections the Act requires, age determination, bail applications, pursuing diversion where it is available and appropriate, and defence at trial before the juvenile courts, with appeals and constitutional petitions where protections have been denied.

These matters are handled discreetly and with the child's identity protected, as the law requires.

If a child has been detained, telephone the chambers — (021) 3263 7006 — rather than waiting on a form.