Investigating The Risk Factors Among Youth Within The Criminal Justice System

The contributing factors to juvenile crime may include poor education performances, poor upbringing, substance abuse, disadvantaged socioeconomic status, low school

The primary risk factors for criminal behavior majorly come into play in the early years of a person’s life.

What is a Juvenile? A juvenile is a person who has not reached his or her 18th birthday. Juvenile delinquency is the violation of a law of the United States committed by a person prior to reaching 18 years of age, which would have been a crime committed by an adult (office). There are many residential programs put in place all over the country to help these youths that are coming in and out of the Criminal Justice system. Once these Juveniles come out of jail, or get released on bond, they sometimes do not have a stable place to go to and live. As these youths are leaving the jail facility there are a wide variety of residential programs to help them get back on their feet. These residential programs include Out of home placement in an institutional or camp like setting, or they might be eligible for an alternative placement, such a community confinement. (programs)

The criminal justice system approaches young offenders through unique policies to address the challenges of dealing with juvenile offending. They take special care when dealing with juveniles in order to stop them from repeat offending and stop any potential bad behaviour which could result in future. Juveniles have the highest tendency to rehabilitate and most adopt law-abiding lifestyles as they mature. There are several factors influencing juvenile crime including psychological and social pressures unique to juveniles, which may lead to an increase in juvenile’s risks of contact with the criminal justice system.

There are a few common reasons for young people to be involved in crime. These include poor parental supervision, drug and alcohol abuse, neglect and abuse, homelessness, negative peer associations and difficulties in school and employment. The criminal justice system effectively deals with young offenders through unique techniques to address the challenges of dealing with juvenile offending. Even though young offenders commit a large percentage of crime, they also have the highest likelihood to be rehabilitated and change their lifestyles as they mature. There are several factors influencing crime by young offenders including psychological and

There are many similarities and differences between the adult and juvenile justice systems. Although juvenile crimes have increased in violence and intensity in the last decade, there is still enough difference between the two legal proceedings, and the behaviors themselves, to keep the systems separated. There is room for changes in each structure. However, we cannot treat/punish juvenile offenders the way we do adult offenders, and vice versa. This much we know. So we have to find a way to merge between the two. And, let’s face it; our juveniles are more important to us in the justice system. They are the group at they

Juvenile justice is the section of law that applies to persons under the age of 18 not capable of receiving sentencing in the adult court system or old enough to be responsible for criminal acts committed in society. In most states the age of criminal culpability is 18 however, the age requirement can be set lower in accordance to certain crimes and statutes set by the state the juvenile lives in. Juvenile law is primarily run by state law and most states enforce a specific juvenile code the system follows. The juvenile justice system primarily focuses on rehabilitation

Today, the juvenile system primary goals are crime reduction and rehabilitation. The juvenile officials must assess whether youthful offenders are likely to commit crimes in the future and whether they can benefit from interventions. If these kids cannot benefit, then they will most like end up a delinquent. In most states delinquency is defined as the commission of a criminal act by a child who was under the age of 18 at that time (Virginia Rules). Most states allow youth to remain under the supervision of the juvenile court until the age of 21, but this depends on the type of crime that was committed. There has been many times where a juvenile case was transferred to an adult criminal court. This would have to be done thru a process called a waiver. A waiver is when a judge waives the protections that the juvenile court provides (Larry J. Siegel). Cases that

Juvenile delinquency has become a controversial issue within the Criminal Justice system. In the United States, juvenile delinquency refers to disruptive and criminal behavior committed by an individual under the age of 18. In many states, a minor at the age of 16 to 17 ½ can be tried as an adult. Once the individual reaches adulthood, the disruptive and criminal behavior is recognized as a crime. However, the criminal justice system has divided juvenile delinquency into two general types of categories that has brought upon controversial issues of inequality and corruption. Yet, putting young individuals in juvenile detentions facilities seems to open the door for them to commit more crimes in the future. Therefore, under certain circumstances juveniles should be tried as an adult.

Many children today are growing up without parents or some kind of legal guardian. When children do not have some type of support system to keep them motivated, more than half of them turn to the streets. Growing up as a teenager alone is very hard. They have no one to turn to, no one to talk to, help them when they need it, someone to just call a friend. Teens need some kind of motivation to keep them going each day. More and more teens today are committing crimes and being tried as adults. Even at the young age of 13. This review considers whether or not adolescents in the criminal justice system have a chance of success by acknowledging the following

Risk factors for juvenile delinquency have been identified from multiple studies. These risk factors are different for older and younger juveniles. When focusing on the individual juvenile between the ages of

According to Street Law, a juvenile is any person who is not yet an adult. In most states and the District of Columbia, individuals under 18 years of age are considered juveniles. The District of Columbia along with most states in the United States view any person under the age of 18 that has committed a crime as a juvenile criminal. Acts of a juvenile crime include but are not limited to: truancy, smoking, drinking, theft, rape, murder, defiance towards parents or guardian, etc. A juvenile criminal can only be held in a juvenile institution until the age of 21, no matter how gruesome their offense may have been.

When a juvenile commits an act that would be criminal if committed by an adult, the juvenile is determined to be delinquent. Delinquent acts may include crimes against persons, crimes against property, drug offenses, and crimes against public order. Delinquency prevention efforts seek to redirect youth who are considered at-risk for delinquency or who have committed a delinquent offense from deeper involvement in the juvenile justice system (Deling, 2014).

Juvenile delinquency is defined as a legal term describing the behavior of a youth that is marked by violation of the law and antisocial behavior. Delinquent acts fall under two categories: adult-committed crime and “age-related” crime. Adult related crimes are crimes that an adult would be punished for had they committed the crime. Adult related crimes are considered more serious and may include burglary, drug use, and murder. Sometimes children may get charged as adults depending on the severity of the crime. The only difference is the child does not receive a trial; they instead receive adjudication and later disposition and sentencing. Age-related crimes are acts that would not be punishable had an adult committed these crimes.

Studies have shown in the past, that some of the main underlying factors that contribute to juvenile delinquency are differential association, peer pressure, socialization, age, mental health and drug/substance abuse. All these independent variables in some way can said to either directly or indirectly influence criminal behavior in juveniles. Other factors like demographics, race, and violent / nonviolent crimes are also taken in consideration at a smaller level. In many of the studies one would think that race would be a main variable but most research has chosen to only consider it as a factor and not as a main variable. When looking at Criminal Juveniles most studies define a juvenile who has committed any crime punishable by the