MINISTER OF JUSTICE RECOGNIZES EXCELLENCE IN POLICE WORK WITH YOUTH

Calgary, August 19, 2007 – Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada, the Honourable Rob Nicholson, P.C., Q.C., M.P. for Niagara Falls, announced today this year's winner of the eighth annual Minister of Justice National Youth Justice Policing Award.

"It is a great privilege to personally recognize these dedicated police officers who are working hard to make communities safer by providing youth with opportunities to make smart choices, " said Minister Nicholson.

The award was presented by the Minister at the annual conference of the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police (CACP) being held in Calgary.

This year's award winner is a Constable Sarah Riddell, a Youth Coordinator with the York Regional Police. Since her appointment as Youth Coordinator in August 2006, Constable Riddell has embraced the guiding principles of the Youth Criminal Justice Act (YCJA) in her work with youth in conflict with the law. As part of an extra-judicial measures program, Constable Riddell has developed unique and effective pre-charge referral programs for youth, including the Toronto Arson Project for Children (TAPP-C) which brings fire service and counselling professionals together with families to deal with youth involved in fire-related offences.

In addition, a certificate of distinction was awarded to Constable Dwayne Cebryk, a member of the RCMP Selkirk detachment, for his work on Selkirk Team for At – Risk Teens (S.T.A.R.T.). The program, created in 2002, involves numerous provincial and community partners working together with the RCMP to identify local youth known as having a high involvement with crime or those deemed at risk of future involvement. The S.T.A.R.T team works with the identified youth and their families to develop strategies to assist the youth in making smarter choices.

The Minister of Justice National Youth Justice Police Award is sponsored by the Department of Justice in collaboration with the CACP. Among the factors considered for the award are innovation and creativity, use of community-based resources as alternatives to the formal court process, and effective use of police discretion, conferencing, alternatives to custody and rehabilitation and reintegration of youth in conflict with the law.

For more information about the award, the winners and nominees, please visit http://www.canada.justice.gc.ca/en/ps/yj/awards/awards.html.

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For more information:

Geneviève Breton
Director of Communications
Minister's Office
613-992-4621

Media Relations
Department of Justice Canada
613-957- 4207