The Ghanaian juvenile justice system encompasses the processes to handle minors who are in conflict with the law or who are in need of care and protection. The formal Ghanaian juvenile justice system was created under colonial rule and has evolved greatly since the early 1900s. Three stark changes for the system are throughout the colonial period, the beginnings of independence and the 1960 Criminal Procedure Code (Act 30), and the newest Juvenile Justice Act (Act 653). The justice system first emerged in colonial Ghana between 1906 and 1911. Though the system was very small and only detected over 1,000 juveniles in conflict with the law by the 1950s, the institutions created by the colonists were used by independent Ghana. Dr Stacey Hynd argued that the colonial juvenile justice system used juvenile delinquent treatment facilities to reform the youth into being better colonial subjects. Ghana underwent their next major reform after the Ghana Independence Act 1957. They created the 1960 Criminal Procedure Code. This code was then used as the principal legislation to dealing with delinquent youth. These issues were dealt with only by the Juvenile Court whose main goal was to determine the guilt of any juvenile that was brought to it. This system was then reformed again by the Juvenile Justice Act of 2003 (JJA). JJA attempted to reform the previous code by injecting principles of welfare, and international standards that uphold human rights and restorative justice. History and Background Child justice in pre-colonial Ghana The justice system in pre-colonial was not separated from the adult system. Unlike colonial and post-colonial Ghana, crime was not defined by the breaking of laws. There was no formal system, in pre-colonial Ghana crime was defined as sins against ones community, tribe, or family. Adults and children who committed sins were often treated in the same way. The village chief and his council of elders were the main social controllers of pre-colonial Ghana, ultimately determining how to handle issues of crime. These issues were also handled by the accused's extended family and peers. Juvenile in conflict with the law in colonial Ghana The British began occupying Ghana, what they called the Gold Coast, in 1821. The formal talkings of how to deal with juvenile delinquency under colonial ruled Ghana, emerged between 1906 and 1911. In this time period nearly 30–70 juveniles were put in detention facilities each year. Governor Guggisberg based this