Criminal offences committed by young persons are governed by the Youth Criminal Justice Act. The Youth Criminal Justice Act applies to children over the age of 12 and under the age of 18. In criminal law youth are treated separately from adults due to what Parliament has recognized as a "diminished moral blameworthiness or culpability." Parliament has explicitly stated the principles of the youth criminal justice system is to “protect the public by holding youth accountable, promoting rehabilitation of youth back into society, and preventing crime. It provides that the youth criminal justice system must be separate from the adult system and based on the principle that youth are presumed to be less morally blameworthy than adults.” This recognition comes into play at sentencing or when the Crown is considering alternative measures. While youth are to be held accountable for their actions, the ultimate goal of the Youth Criminal Justice Act in sentencing is to address the rehabilitation and reintegration of youth in our society. This is typically done by addressing the needs of the youth and assisting in providing guidance and support from the community or social programming. As with any offence under the Criminal Code a youth should seek to retain a lawyer to review if there are any issues or defences in their case.