25-05-2025
Call for early intervention programs to fight youth crime epidemic
Cairns Police Department Senior Sergeant Kelly Chamberlain says early intervention is the 'absolute key' in easing Australia's youth crime crisis.
As the founder of PCYC's diversion-based program 'After Dark', Ms Chamberlain is providing a safe environment for 11 to 17-year-olds, hoping to steer them on the right path.
'If we can prevent young people from starting to make those poor choices early, then eventually we are going to get to the point where the increases in crime start to slow down,' she said.
'We all know it's never ever going to completely stop, but what we want is obviously this epidemic that's going through the whole of Australia, not just Cairns, to slow down significantly, and the only way is through early intervention – starting younger and younger.'
In partnership with Harvey Norman
