Although some may believe that incarceration may be the most concrete way to stop recidivism, there are other alternatives that have had success as well. One in particular is the diversion program. The Center on Juvenile and Criminal Justice states that “processing certain youth through the juvenile justice system may do more harm than good”. There can be many reasons why it can do more harm, one being that they may have committed a petty crime and now they are being placed among more dangerous influential offenders. Offenders may also have a bad record due to a petty act which is something that can be avoided by completing the diversion program. The diversion program can offer alternatives such as community service instead of incarceration.
There have been studies done showing that the diversion program can be very successful. Pogrebin and Poole did a study on two groups of juveniles in the state of Colorado. One group received the diversion program and the other was the control group which received the normal sentence. Pogrebin found that “the diversion program
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One of these prevention programs is the Big Brothers and Big Sisters program. According to BBBS.org the mission of the program is to “help children realize their potential and build their futures” while “nurturing children and strengthening communities”. As you can see this program specifically targets youth and molding them in to good civilians. BBBs.org also states that “89 percent of youth in our program improve their ability to avoid risky behavior”. This directly relates to helping the youth avoid crime. The big brothers and big sisters youth outcome report for January 2012 found “Statistically significant improvement” in avoiding activities such as drugs, skipping school, hitting and breaking rules at school. Improvements in these areas show that this is an effective program in preventing
Seeing as many of these “at-risk” youth lack educational goals, this is a great and effective way of laying out possible future goals and educational paths. As a result of the Cops Mentoring Kids program, there has and continues to be a drastic increase in class attendance, healthier attitudes toward school and home, and probability to enroll in college. This program also introduces a decrease in liability to skip school, use of alcohol, “tempt to initiate drug use, and incline to strike another person” (Sanchez, 2017). Thanks to Hollywood, Florida, Police Department (HPD), over 20,000 at risk youth have participated and benefited from this miraculous program (Sanchez, 2017). The CMK program has been a lifesaver for many youth and their families, therefore this program deserves to be recognize and
However, when emphasizing on the main theme of the devastation felt by the victims during the incarceration of the kids in the “kids for cash” scandal, the author juxtaposes repeatedly the victimized “good kids” with the “bad kids” that awaited them in the juvenile detention centers. Ecenbarger wrote that some girls were tough at the camp and were teenagers from the inner city convicted for violent crimes. However, others were also in the detention camp for stealing the credit cards of the fathers to purchase clothes and for bringing pocket knives unintentionally to school (Ecenbarger, 2012, p.9). Similarly, the author wrote that “there was no sinister gang that inspired Paige who is fifteen years old to throw a sandal to her mother when they had an argument…Paige did not understand why she was being interned at the detention camp with
There are indication that most criminals have a juvenile records in the US, indicating that crime manifests from a tender age. Therefore, to reverse the incidence of crime, it follows that the best strategy is to reduce the criminal orientation in the juvenile offenders as opposed to hardening them and preparing them for criminal careers. The case of the Crossroads Juvenile Center demonstrates the willingness of the juvenile justice systems to make these changes on the children. References Day, S. (2014). Runaway Man: A Journey Back to Hope.
This website discusses the main focus their diversion programs have when interacting with first time offenders. As it describes the main focus of the program it mentions how ninety percent of first time offenders who go through this program do not reoffend. This teen court diversion program is well known around the Lansing area of Michigan. It is well known because this program not just work with juveniles as they offend but also work closely with their family and the school they attend. Teen Court does not just focus on the individual it focuses on other factors that can potentially affect the youth.
The balanced and restorative approach provides a significant change in toles and image of the juvenile justice system from a revolving door to a resource. The resource makes juvenile offenders accountable and enhances the quality of life within communities by community restoration using preventive services to help improve the safety of the community. 2-Compare and contrast the different types of restorative justice (i.e., VOM, FGC, NRB, peacemaking/sentencing circles)
The literature that has been reviewed directly incorporates the principles set out in Goldson and Muncie “Youth Justice with Integrity”. The analysis of the current justice model attempts to maximize diversion by providing more offences available for extrajudicial measures and the use of measures for re-offenders. Additionally, it is argued that the de-politicization of the youth justice model will help the integrity by providing effective programs and services that will address the social needs of specific individuals within the available resources in the community. The programs and services that are being used are effective, but there are areas of improvement for greater prevention strategies which will hold a person more accountable for
His includes reforming the criminal justice system to prioritize rehabilitation and diversion programs over punishment, and incarceration can help to reduce the impact of the pipeline. The
Social Disorganization is an obstacle one has to overcome and the BGCA helps at-risk children defend against stereotypes and build a better tomorrow. The BGCA helps get kids off the streets, thus deterring crime in neighborhoods that are the most vulnerable. The BGCA gives children who are seeing evidence of social disorganization, such as broken windows and graffiti, to have a refuge that is safe and away from the wicked world outside. These organizations help kids struggling to find a place to stay. In areas where there is higher ethnic diversity there is a higher percentage of crime.
The Diversion Program One of the many professional regulatory boards and bureaus existing within the Department of Consumer Affairs is the Board of Registered Nursing (BRN). Its main responsibility lies in licensing and regulating California’s registered nurses and these responsibilities come from the Nursing Practice Act. This act is composed of statures which give BRN the authority to manage a Diversion Program for registered nurses and other functions. This Diversion Program is a confidential but voluntary program for registered nurses where their substance use disorder or mental illness impairs their practice.
The existence of the program has been perpetuated by its depiction on the A&E hit reality series Beyond Scared Straight. Though expensive, more effective and less harmful programs exist, such as Multisystemic Therapy. The outcome of juvenile crime prevention programs in general, not only Scared
A study done by Criminal justice inspection Northern Ireland found the rate of recidivism went down when young offenders were diverted into restorative justice furthermore study concludes that people were often quite pleased with the outcome of the restorative justice(Restorative Justice Council,
Using juvenile drug court as an alternative to incarceration to decrease the rapidly increasing number of young offenders is a policy that includes various key concepts that one must understand. To start, juvenile drug courts are mostly voluntary. While some juvenile drug courts are mandated, this aspect has not motivated a vast majority of these courts to follow suit. Therefore, these programs are designed to keep youth from using any type of substance. These juveniles are obviously involved in this type of program due to their substance use/abuse issues.
(1994). JUVENILE OFFENDERS: WHAT WORKS? A Summary of Research
However, some intervention programs results were purely positive. Catalano et al’s program resulted in better youth health management and practices, increased decision making and interpersonal skills, the ability to problem-solve, increased empathy and academic achievement, as well as a higher capacity for youth self-regulation in reactions and behaviour (Catalano et al., 2004). Moreover Catalano et al’s research indicated improvement in at risk behaviours where trends in “drug and alcohol use, school misbehaviour, aggressive behaviour, violence, truancy, high-risk sexual behaviour, and smoking”, were reduced (2004, pp. 117). Similarly, Larson (2000) suggests participation in youth programs increases adolescent self-confidence and
Conclusion After school programs have been around for over a hundred years. Present studies have shown that a large body of research has emerged that analyzes the landscape of after-school programs and the impact they have on children. It shows that structured after-school programs can provide positive environment for young people to develop and possibly deter crime.