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Criminal Justice: Juvenile Delinquency
Juvenile delinquency is described as the participation of minors, usually under the legal age of 18, in criminal activities. Cases of juvenile delinquency have increased at an alarming rate in recent years. According to the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, OJJDP (2015), juveniles under the age of 18 are responsible for about 10% of all homicides. In the period between 1990 and 2003, violent crimes by juveniles declined significantly - but after 2003, the previous trend continued and about 30% of murder crimes were attributed to delinquency. Today, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) incarcerates more than 33000 minors under the age of 18 for different criminal offenses (OJJDP, 2015). The fight against juvenile delinquency is often inconvenienced by recidivism. Recidivism occurs when juvenile offenders relapse back to their criminal ways after they are released from residential care. Majority of juvenile offenders are rearrested within two years of release. This text looks at two cases: Tom who recidivates, and Jennifer - a first time offender, and also explains the process of the juvenile justice system and the possible dispositional outcomes.
First time offenders
In the context of this text, a first time offender is a minor who gets caught engaging in a criminal act for the fast time and who does not own or have a criminal record. It has been argued that the way first time offenders are handled greatly determines if they will go back to criminal acts when released (Burfeind and Bartusch, 2011). When handled with severity, first time offences give law enforcement agencies a chance to reverse habits that may lead to serious crimes in the future and also give the offenders a chance to learn to take responsibility and reform. Siegel and Welsh (2015) refer to this as the specific deterrence theory, which holds that young offenders are less likely to repeat a criminal act if they are punished severely. In punishing the juvenile offenders, the National Institute of Justice (2015) states...
Since she is a first time offender, the officer handling the case first obtains information from the victims then decides whether to dismiss it, handle it informally, or formally. Jennifer does not have past criminal record - therefore, this is considered a status offense and probation will be granted. According to the OJJDP (2015), Jennifer will be allowed to go back to her normal life but will be required to comply with certain conditions set by the court and agreed upon under a consent decree. There are usually regular visits between a first time offender and a probation officer, where progress is monitored. Vandalism is not categorized as a severe offence for a first time offender. The disposition in this case, therefore, includes: restitution, where Jennifer pays back for the damage using community service, mandatory school attendance, and participation in rehabilitation programs. If the probation officer is satisfied with Jennifer's progress and ascertains that all the conditions agreed upon by the consent decree have been met, the juvenile case will be dismissed.
Repeat juvenile offender
Repeat offenders are required to have a formal hearing in court. There have been numerous cases where repeat juvenile offenders who engage in violent activities are treated as adult offenders. In fact, Welsh and Siegel (2015) state that approximately 25,000 minors are serving time in adult jails. Depending on the criminal act, the hearing can either take place in a criminal court or a juvenile court. Most repeat juvenile cases that involve violent and serious crimes require a waiver petition to…
References
Burfeinf, J.W & Bartusch, D. (2011). Juvenile Delinquency: An Integrated Approach. Sudbury, MA: Jones and Bartlett Publishers, LLC.
National Institute of Justice (2015). Formal System Processing for Juveniles. Crime solutions. Retrieved 6 February 2015 from https://www.crimesolutions.gov/PracticeDetails.aspx?ID=9
The Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention. (2015). Juvenile Justice System Structure and Process. Office of Justice Programs. Retrieved 6 February 2015 from http://www.ojjdp.gov/ojstatbb/structure_process/index.html
Welsh, B. C & Siegel, L. J (2015). Juvenile Delinquency: Theory, Practice, and Law. Stamford, CT: Cengage Learning.
While the subject's rationale for blaming his most recent victim for dressing provocatively may reflect "normal" (Macionis 2002) social conditioning (particularly among adolescent males), his complete lack of empathy (as distinct from responsibility or fault) is more consistent with pathological indifference and lack of empathy often observed in serial rapists and other sociopaths who display a clinical indifference to their victims (Gerrig & Zimbardo 2005). Subsequent analysis will distinguish whether
For example, Cook County, IL, has built a network of support for juvenile female offenders within the local community. The county has developed its own gender-specific assessment and treatment guidelines and has trained youth-facing community workers on assessing juvenile offenders and recommending programming. (Juvenile Justice Journal, 1999, p. 30). Also, the county designed a pilot network of social service agencies in order to provide a community-based continuum of care. (Juvenile
Juvenile Justice The Juvenile Criminal Justice System Juvenile courts and detention separate from adult courts is a relatively new concept (ABA, 2010). Before the turn of the twentieth century, the cases for individuals of all ages were managed by the same criminal and civil courts, and the same sentences were handed out to all parties. Of course, this has changed to a great extent since 1899 in the United States, but there
Causes of Juvenile Delinquency Criminal Justice The problem of juvenile delinquency is becoming more complicated and universal, and crime prevention programs are either unequipped to deal with the present realities or do not exist. Many developing countries have done little or nothing to deal with these problems, and international programs are obviously insufficient. Developed countries are engaged in activities aimed at juvenile crime prevention, but the overall effect of these programs is
Juvenile Crime Issues in the Criminal Justice System Similar to the concept of childhood, the legal idea of the juvenile justice system or status is relatively new. In the United States, the juvenile court system was established approximately 200 years ago with the first juvenile court instituted in 1899. Before the inception of the first juvenile court, children and the youth were regarded as small adults and were therefore prosecuted and
Patterns Juvenile Delinquency Throughout the World/How Determine Who Juvenile? Patterns in juvenile delinquency also vary throughout the world, as do the way countries define "delinquency" among juveniles. The Japanese according to Platt (2005) have taken on a much more philosophical approach to juvenile delinquency, supporting a Confucian style structure of education and support, one that works toward educating children to become part of the larger social collective (p. 965). In this