Incarceration Of Youth And Its Effects On Reducing Crime Essay

However, this study showed that there was a difference in cognitive and moral capabilities between adults and juveniles and thus enabling courts to make different decision on the fate of a juvenile and an adult. From this study, prosecution of a juvenile can be done in an adult’s court but serve the sentence in a juvenile set up as was Jose’s case. The case of Christian Fernandez and Jose are related in that both leads to death. Both cases are also tried in an adult’s court. However, Jose serves his sentence in a Juvenile Hall whereas Christian serves his’in adults’ setup.

This book’s main proposal is that there is a blatant contradiction in the way that the juvenile justice system is carried out. Throughout the book, Feld proposes that as a result of this contradiction, the modern juvenile justice system fails in every way possible to establish justice for youthful offenders, provide them with any rehabilitation, or provides any preventative measures that were originally the purpose of the system. What originally constituted the juvenile justice system no longer is supported through its processes, but the ideas that helped form the original system are still somewhat maintained. The idea of childhood during the progressive era, in short, say that there is a definite distinction between kids and adults, and that kids deserved special treatment when it came to dealing with offenses. Kids did not deserve as much blame as adults do because they are not yet totally in control of their actions, and thus to preserve and protect troubled children’s futures, kids

According to T. Williams at https://www.nytimes.com/2016/12/29/us/us-prison-population.html?_r=0, (2016). “The number of inmates held in state and federal prisons, fell to its lowest level since 2005 dropping by 2.7 percent.” However, while adult crimes seem to be decreasing. The opposite can be said about juvenile related crimes which seem to be increasing. In this paper, I will be providing my reasons as to why I believe juvenile related crimes are going up, as well as talk about two programs that are working to keep at risk youth out of the criminal justice system.

The position of juveniles in the current society is very important, as well as their position in criminal procedure. The presence of an individual adolescent justice system separates of the adult criminal-justice system and general criminal procedure, as well as the sporadic modifications of the dominant approach in philosophy and preparation reflect the power of different hypothetical viewpoints in the juvenile justice system.

It is understood that at an early age, it is impossible to some advocates, for children to have the mental ability like that of a normal adult, to plan and execute a crime and moreover to understand the consequences of it. Therefore it is controversial where or not to try them as adults. During the adolescent years, it is asserted that a child becomes mature and begins to understand important concepts like society and expectations they are still trying to deal with society, their own inner battles of peer pressure, lack of direction, impulsiveness and lack of identity, according to the Legal and Justice Center. At

Juveniles committing crimes, being arrested and going to jails and prisons, is a sad fact that has hit every city, in every state in the United States of America. It is not a hard thing to comprehend, turn on the TV and watch the news. Every night there is surely to be a report about a crime committed by one of America’s youth. Many people question the reason for such high numbers of juveniles committing crimes; others turn a blind eye and refuse to acknowledge the fact that every day more children of this country are slipping into the life of crime. Some concerned members of society ask what can be done to stop it; how can they help? The answer is action! Law enforcement, as well as Local, State, and

Many adolescents were tried as adult, therefore given them the same punishment as adult. Juvenile court reformers argued that justice system should offer treatments that cure juveniles of their antisocial ways. People believed that criminal punishments should be based on the culpability of the person as well as the harm he or she causes. Development researchers clarifies that juveniles should not be deemed as culpable as adults since they are immature, this does not mean these juveniles are innocent whose crimes should be excused, this known as the development model. People should take in consideration that teenagers and adults are different. In areas like decision making ability, future orientation, personal identity and response to peer pressure.

Since the 1970s, America’s prison population rate has risen 700%. Despite the U.S. comprising only 5% of the world’s population, it is the largest jailer with 25% of the world’s prison population with one in 99 adults in prison and one in 31 under some type of correctional control (Mass Incarceration Problems, 2014, p. 1). According to 2013 data, 2.2 million are currently incarcerated in U.S. prisons or jails (Incarceration, 2013, para. 1), a figure that indicates a rising problem with prison overcrowding. While prison overcrowding increases the economic burdens on local and state governments, common factors leading to the high prison population is linked to the need for improved juvenile programs that deter criminal behavior and fund for rehabilitation for reentry into mainstream society. With effective programs to deter juvenile crime and to aid in offender reentry coupled with sentencing reforms, overcrowding in the nation’s prisons would decline.

Juveniles who is housed with adults is a major issue. It’s important to address this issue accordingly, however the issue is not addressed. Why would you houses juveniles with adults together? Juveniles and adults have two different minds fames. Yes, some would say “you the crime, you do the time”, however juveniles are not mentally and physically equal. I believe that, their lives can be ruined. Everyone deserves a second chance. The outcome of housing then together could produce a negative effect on the juvenile and society as a whole. Are we creating more problems for ourselves?

Before some kids can graduate high school, get a driver’s license, or vote, many juveniles are ripped from their homes and sent to juvenile detention centers. They will now spend the next week, three months, or year of their life surrounded by other troubled teens, have minimum contact with siblings, parents, and other family members, suffer through isolation, removal of visitations, and overcrowding. The use of juvenile detention centers is overused and the practices within these centers have damaging effects on teens.

In the last 42 years little to no changes have been made to correct the standards that govern punitive measures towards juvenile delinquency. Today juvenile law is governed by state and many states have enacted a juvenile code. However, in numerous cases, juveniles are transferred to adult court when juvenile courts waive or relinquish jurisdiction. Adolescents should not be tried in the adult court system or sentenced to adult penitentiary's on account of: teen brains are not mature which causes a lack of understanding towards the system, incarceration in an adult facility increases juvenile crime, and children that are sentenced to adult prison are vulnerable to abuse and rape.

There is a controversy on whether or not minors under the age of 18 who have commited a crime should be charged and punished as adults. Many people think that in certain situations, juveniles should be tried as adults, not all the time. In court, there are five criteria that is used to determine the offender’s fate. The five criteria taken into account are the degree of the crime, previous delinquent history, previous rehabilitation, how long the delinquent has to be rehabilitated, and the seriousness of the crime. Serious crimes, also considered adult crimes, include murder, rape, torture, arson, and more. With all ideas and facts taken into account, juveniles convicted of serious crimes should be tried and punished as adults.

Studies suggest that there is a divide between the government and public response to juvenile incarceration. Bullis & Yovas (2005) state that support is given to correctional facilities to house juvenile offenders as a form of punishment (as cited in Shannon, 2013, p. 17). Individuals who support this perspective are often more likely to support the construction of more prisons and stern penalties on crime based upon the presumptions that youthful offenders are aware of the consequences of their actions (Drakeford, 2002 as cited in Shannon, 2013, p. 17). On the other hand, opponents of this perspective believe that incarceration creates an opportunity to rehabilitate the offenders (Huffine, 2006 as cited in Shannon, 2013, p. 18). This perspective supports the purpose of juvenile detention centers as “preparatory in nature – that is, offering services focused on the development of skills needed to return successfully to mainstream

No, incarceration is not an effective measure for response to youth crime. Due to youths’ mental immaturity, they are vulnerable to high levels of stress and anxiety, with addition of mental disorders arising from the distress. The youth had already been exposed to “abuse, family instability, involvement with child welfare, and school difficulties” (Corrado & MacAlister, 2016, p. 358) and therefore, intervention is more important than a punitive sentence. It is recommended to use alternative measures such as placing youth into family-focused and multi-focused correctional programs, which are found to more efficient than programs which are focused on the youth alone.

Juvenile offenders are being accused of crimes in an alarmingly high rate. According to the report of Manila Department of Social Welfare, most crimes that involve children are mostly from poor rebellious families. Juveniles are the ones who fall under the age of 18. The students agree with Underage Imprisonment due to the fact that age is not a factor on taking responsibility for one’s actions. These delinquents must understand and learn the consequences of bad decisions. The students deem it important to discuss the topic since it is a controversial topic – some people are suggesting a way to make the world safer by trying juveniles as adults. Will convicting juveniles be judged as an adult be a better solution? Will it create discouragement to stop crime?