LAW

Juvenile Correctional System

Juvenile Correctional System

Introduction

Questions of crime and punishment, divisive issues to begin with, are especially controversial when applied to juveniles. At issue is whether to treat underage offenders, particularly those who commit more serious crimes like murder, in the same way as adult offenders are treated. Social standards concerning the status of children and adolescents, as well as the nature of punishment and justice, have helped shape the debate. In most states, people under the age of 18 who are accused of a crime are sent to juvenile court, a separate system from regular criminal courts. In a handful of states, however, the juvenile courts only handle offenders who are under the age of 17 or 16. Many states try juveniles as adults in certain situations relating to past offenses or the current alleged offense. In some states, prosecutors are given the authority to decide whether certain cases will be tried in adult or juvenile court (McCord et al, 2001).

History

In the 1980s and 1990s, rising rates of criminal activity by people under the age of 18 sparked public concern and prompted authorities to enact harsher means of dealing with youthful offenders. In the years between 1992 and 1997, for example, 44 states and the District of Columbia passed laws making it easier to try juvenile offenders as adults. In the mid-1990s, when juvenile crime rates began to drop, some observers began to question whether the methods used to deal with underage offenders had become excessive. Opponents of trying juveniles as adults maintain that underage offenders are fundamentally different from adult offenders. They point out that juveniles are generally treated differently by the law, and say that it is logical for that difference to be extended into the realm of punishment. Juveniles can be more greatly influenced by certain factors, such as abuse, than adults can, and their treatment by the law should reflect that, critics argue.

Also, because juveniles are generally more impressionable, opponents argue, they are more likely to be negatively affected by imprisonment in facilities for adults than adults are. Once incarcerated, juveniles are more likely than adults to be physically victimized and psychologically damaged, leading to a greater likelihood of criminal activity in the future, critics say.

Tougher legal treatment also affects certain juveniles more than others, opponents say. In particular, they argue that minorities in the legal system have been shown to receive disproportionately harsh treatment. Treating underage offenders as adults exacerbates conditions of inequality, critics say, noting that minority offenders are far more likely to be tried as adults than white offenders (Champion, 2010).

Debate

Proponents of adult treatment for juvenile offenders, on the other hand, say that the juvenile justice system is too lenient to effectively deal with underage crime. Only by imposing significant penalties for criminal behavior can the justice system hope to deter youthful offenders, they argue. Violent crimes call for a proportionate response, regardless of the age of the perpetrator, they maintain. Supporters insist that the most violent of young offenders are ...