The American Juvenile Justice System
Justice for Juveniles The American juvenile justice system was designed over a hundred years ago to reform kids who were found guilty of minor crimes such as petty theft and truancy. Today, the system is becoming overwhelmed by crimes of violence. Stealing and skipping school have been replaced by violent crimes, such as rape and murder. The juvenile justice system is not meant to deal with these kinds of problems. In the past, the juvenile justice system sought to rehabilitate youthful offenders by taking a protective stance over juvenile delinquents. However, the protect instead of punish philosophy does not work for today’s society. Today, as juvenile crime has become more common and violent, our system will be forced to change. The justice …show more content…
In Ken Stier’s article, “Getting the Juvenile-Justice System to Grow Up”, in Time Magazine, he affirms the fact that every year, some 200,000 youths are tried, sentenced or incarcerated as adults. He also discusses how many advocates and academics argue that juveniles are not being given enough of a chance to turn their lives around after committing minor offenses. In agreement with Stier, I consider that juveniles have greater possibility than adults to make a change in their lives with the right help, counseling and rehabilitation. A 14-year-old from Wilkes-Barre, for instance, spent a year in a Glen Mills detention facility for the offense of stealing loose change from unlocked cars to buy a bag of chips; he was only set free after public-interest lawyers challenged the constitutionality of the punishment. Stier also states; there is new brain research showing that the full development of the frontal lobe, where rational judgments are made, does not occur until the early to …show more content…
Dealing effectively with juvenile delinquency involves two important actions prevention and intervention. Each of which has somewhat of a different purpose but both require effort. Prevention is an essential part of an effective strategy for addressing juvenile delinquency in any community. If it were completely successful, there would be no need for a juvenile justice system and, even when only partially successful, it produces better outcomes for the affected youth, the community, and the juvenile justice system (Lipsey 11). A lot is known about effective prevention programs from research and practice but, the question of how to enhance the programs for cost-effective impact on juvenile behavior is the
Analysis Of Should 11-Year-Olds Be Charged With Adult Crimes
941 Words | 4 PagesThe purpose of the juvenile system is to focus on the reasons for their behavior rather than focusing on the being guilty or innocent, like how the adult court system works. Having community based restorative justice is one of the main targets the system should focus on with juveniles. Community based restorative justice focuses on the harm that was caused and what needs to happen in order to be better. I also believe that getting juveniles involved in community service will only do good for the kids as well. Another statement mentioned in the article “Juvenile InJustice: Charging Youth as Adults Is Ineffective, Biased, and Harmful” they write, “When we lock up young people, they are more likely to be exposed to extreme violence, fall prey to abuse, and suffer from illness.
Greg Ousley's Article Summary
931 Words | 4 PagesThese studies also show that a great deal of teenagers who commit serious felonies have a severe psychological illness. Instead of getting the help, teenagers are forced into adult prisons without getting the mental help they desperately need. The author chose to write this article to advocate for the teens that are tried as adults when there is a juvenile court system. He uses Greg as an example of a teenager who was tried as an adult committing murder. He uses Greg to represent the other teenagers in the adult system who have committed a serious felony similar to his.
Summary Of No Matter How Loud I Shout
2510 Words | 11 PagesAccording to the book, Lost Angeles County is the largest juvenile justice system in America; yet, the home for most of the youths who have committed grievous crimes. Home for those who seems to have a chance at rehabilitation but are sentenced to adult prison for no logical reason while some youth are freed with little consequences after committing a violent crimes. This is a shameful thing that needs to be corrected in the juvenile justice system. Two and half million children under eighteen are being arrested in the United States in a year, three out of four will be released as if nothing happened, their cases will be dismissed because they are too minor for the system to break-down or too difficult to try. The repeated offenders will receive a meaningful punishment when their offenses have progressed to a more serious level.
Crossroads Juvenile Center Research Paper
1622 Words | 7 PagesThere 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.
Summary: The Virginia Juvenile Court System
1278 Words | 6 PagesThis program promotes a positive collaboration between offending youths, the justice system, and the community through the acceptance of responsibility, compliance with the disposition, and the completion of sanctions without a formal juvenile record. The intended outcome of this program is to reduce court backlogs, improve timeliness of case adjudication, cost savings, and accountability for first time, in some cases, second chances for misdemeanor offenders within the local community. Social learning theory proposes that youths learn deviance through imitation, cognitive definitions, differential reinforcement and association (Akers & Lee, 1996). Social influence theory contains conceptual elements of peer pressure, normative influence, and modeling (Maxwell, 2002).
Persuasive Essay On Monster By Walter Dean Myers
813 Words | 4 PagesEveryone makes mistakes. Whether it’s accidental, like taking an item without paying at the store, or purposeful, like robbing someone at gunpoint. Subsequently, every action comes with a consequence. However, these consequences can be too extreme or unfair. These unfortunate occurrences are happening in our juvenile justice system.
JJDPA Analysis
1292 Words | 6 PagesThe Juvenile Justice Delinquency Prevention and Protection Act (JJDPA) was established in 1974 and was the first federal law that dealt comprehensively with juvenile delinquency to improve the juvenile justice system and support state and local efforts at delinquency prevention. This paper will assess the JJDPA and summarize its purpose and implementation and enforcement. Next, there will be a discussion of the historical context of the policy; followed by a focus of the latent consequences. Finally there will be a vignette as to how this Act has affected a person or family as well as personal reflection toward the policy.
Progressive Era Reform Of Juveniles Essay
557 Words | 3 PagesThe juvenile system was designed a long time ago to try and rehabilitate also to reform juveniles that committed crimes. In some cases, juveniles today have evolved to many more adult crimes. Many of these crimes have come on the form of raping’s and murders. The original
Disparities In Juvenile Prisons
676 Words | 3 PagesLife in in american prison is a brutal experience. Tensions run high as criminals are confined to to cells and given minimal interactions with the outside world; admittedly for some convict a life sentence is due punishments, but for juveniles with life sentences their actions as a teen can end their life before it even begins. For juveniles who have committed a violent crime, (defined as robbery; murder and non-intentional manslaughter, rape, and aggravated assault by the FBI), life sentences are fairly common. In fact, in a paper written by Stella Steele, a BSA analyst and investigator on the “Disparities and Harshness of Youth Sentencing” touched on the subject of juvenile sentencing. She demonstrating the high rates of harsher punishments
Juvenile Crime Annotated Bibliography
1043 Words | 5 PagesUnited States: Greenhaven Publishing. The book provides various opposing viewpoints regarding the cause of juvenile crime and how the criminal justice system should treat juvenile offenders. Each argument highlights the main risk factors for juvenile crime. For example, gang plays a large part of juvenile violence.
Juvenile Rehabilitation In Adult Prisons
636 Words | 3 PagesImagine being a child imprisoned for committing a crime for which you did not understand the consequences. Alone and afraid, with only hardened criminals and psychopaths as adult role models, you live in fear. Through a vicious combination of physical, sexual, emotional, and mental abuse, there is no option but to turn back to crime as an adult, and continue the cycle. This is a daily reality for thousands of American juveniles. Yet, we continue to call it the juvenile justice system.
Juveniles Being Tried As Adults
2451 Words | 10 PagesA Bureau of Justice Statistics conducted a study in 40 of the nation’s largest urban communities. “It was found that an estimated 7,100 juvenile defendants were charged with felonies in adult criminal court in 1998. Of these 40 county criminal courts, juveniles were 64% more likely than adults to be charged with a violent felony. These juvenile defendants were generally treated as serious offenders, as 52% did not receive pretrial release, 63% were convicted of a felony, and 43% of those convicted received a prison sentence. States have expanded the mechanisms by which juveniles can be charged in criminal courts.
Essay On Ethical Issues In Juvenile Justice
849 Words | 4 PagesThere are differences between a juvenile court and criminal court in the United States. The focus of the juvenile justice system is on rehabilitation, in hope of deterring the minor away from a life of crime so they will not commit a crime again as an adult. In contrast, the criminal justice system focuses on the punishment and often bases the sentencing outcome on the criminal history of the youth. In a study conducted, Butler (2011) showed that the participants’ experience with adult jails and prisons show that those facilities may instill fear but are otherwise emotionally—and often physically—dangerous for youth. Many of the adult prisoners, who were minors when they enter the adult institution, felt they were forced to “grow
Should Juveniles Be Tried As Adults In Criminal Court?
1979 Words | 8 PagesIn today’s world there are countless crimes committed every single day. “In 2015, there were 1.42 million total arrests, at a rate of 3,641 arrests per 100,000 residents” (State of California, Department of Justice). Grown adults are not the only people being arrested every year, there are also juveniles, children, being arrested every day. One topic of controversy today is whether or not juveniles who commit these crimes should be tried as adults in criminal court. There are many differences between the justice system for adults and the justice system for juveniles.
Thesis Statement On Juvenile Delinquency
2409 Words | 10 Pages(1988). Juvenile Delinquency: Theory, Practice and Law (3rd ed.). United States of America: West Publishing Company. Wright, W. &.
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