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¶ … Victimization: Juvenile Justice
Victimization of juveniles is more widespread and prevalent than is commonly perceived. This view is shared by many experts in the field who study the statistical data relating to victimization. More than 800, 000 children - or 12 per 1, 0000 - were victims of crime, abuse or maltreatment in 2000. Sixty-three percent of maltreated children were neglected, nineteen percent were physically abused, ten percent were sexually abused, and eight percent were emotionally or psychologically maltreated. (NCVC)
In a recently released report on teen victims of crime, the National Centre for Victims of Crime urged that the problems of juvenile victimization must be addressed to find solutions. "The victimization of teenagers in America has gone largely unrecognized. Instead, in the context of crime and violence, our nation's young people are more typically characterized as troublemakers, predators, and violent criminals. When victimization has been recognized, public attention has focused almost solely on large-scale incidents, such as school shootings. Furthermore, the victims of these tragic events represent only a fraction of the teens who become crime victims. After years of focusing solely on juvenile offenders, it is time to shift our attention to the plight of juvenile victims." (NCVC: Teen Victims Report)
The same report also emphasizes that...
Teenagers are twice as likely as others to be victims of violent crime. In a national survey of high school students, one in five reported they were a victim of a violent crime in the past year. Other data show they are also more likely to be victims of property crimes than adults, although they do not often report it to the police."
1. Victimization by age
The National Centre for Victims of Crime states that "The rate of victimization of children was inversely related to the age of the child." ( NCVD) From the same source it is stated that "Children from birth to age 3 were victimized at the highest rate." It certainly seems that - from all the statistics - children and juveniles experience more episodes of serious victimization than any other age group. An extensive perspective is given of the distribution according to age from a special report released by the U.S. Department of Justice; Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) entitled Age Patterns of Victims of Serious Crimes. They found that "victimization rates increase through teenage years, crest at around age 20, and steadily decrease throughout adult years. This pattern, with some exceptions, exists across all race, sex, and ethnic groups.
(OVC)
Evidence that juveniles and younger people are increasingly the target of…
(ibid)
Almost 1 in 10 murder victims aged 18 to 21 were black. (Ibid., p. 1) African-American youths were almost twice as likely (92% higher rate) than White youths to be victimized by aggravated assault. Another report breaks down the statistics by race in the following:
"Approximately 885,623 African-Americans were victims of violent crime during 2001. Blacks had the highest rate of violent victimization of any other racial group (31.2 per 1,000). In 2001, approximately 750,400 Hispanics experienced violent crime. Of men, the percentage of Hispanics who reported their violent victimization to the police is higher than for any other racial/ethnic group, while the same holds true for black women." ( ibid) Other reports state that African-American teenagers are twice as likely to report maltreatment and five times more likely to be killed in a shooting incident than white teenagers. American Indian teenagers however are more likely than any other group
Washington courts registered 13,127 juvenile offenses in 2005, of whom 77% were boys and 76% of them had previous offenses and imprisonments (SGC, 2008). Of the total rate of recidivists, 72% were girls. Those convicted are given dispositions rather than sentenced. Information on race and ethnicity appeared inaccurate. While only 3.94% of the Washington population was African-American, African-American accounted for 13.11% of all recorded juvenile dispositions. This was a disproportionately
Studies indicate that "... A higher than average incidence of delinquency occurs among youngsters of the poorest social standing and with the lowest performance at school..." (Jarvelin et al., 1994, p. 230) Similarly, studies also note that neighborhood influences on development was determinant on factors such as "...collective socialization, peer-group influence, and institutional capacity." (Sampson, Morenoff & Gannon-Rowley, 2002. p 443) Generally studies like the above present a negative picture of
S.A.). Most youths in state facilities have also been held in detention centers, though they tend to be more chronic, serious offenders. Every day, averages of 54,500 youths are incarcerated in U.S. detention or correctional institutions. These incarcerations may harm the youths and make it more likely they will continue offending. It is important, where possible, to intervene with youth and families prior to detention or incarceration. No single factor
Juvenile Delinquent and Mental Disorders Analyze Empirical Maltreated youth and delinquent behaviors Maltreatment, Family and Childhood Peers and Adolescence Aging into Early Adulthood Crime risk and out-of-home care youth Juvenile Delinquent and Mental Disorders The transition of youth from adolescence to adulthood is usually a difficult and painful period. This is an even more difficult time for the youth who are removed from the home of biological parents to be placed into out-of-home care. For them, they not
Findings revealed the importance of early intervention and other schooling factors in reducing delinquency. They also emphasized the benefits of early intervention as one effective measure in preventing delinquency (Mann & Reynolds). The study established the connection between a large-scale preschool program and reductions in the incidence, frequency and severity of juvenile crime (Mann & Reynolds, 2006). The connection is between early social functioning and severe behavioral problems. Social functioning
Moreover, if an adolescent who has reached 18 commits sexual offending is considered an adult sex offender, "what does this mean for young adults who engaged in sexually abusive behavior prior to age 18?" (p. 433). Because of this blurry line, Rich suggests, it is imperative that adolescents of older age must especially be provided with comprehensive treatment programs to prevent them from developing fixed sexualized abusive interests. Because of