Should Teenagers Stay In Juvenile Detention Centers?

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)

In America on any give day, approximately ten thousand juveniles are housed in adult prisons and jails. Approximately two hundred thousand juveniles enter the adult criminal justice system each year and most have non-violent crimes. Juveniles in the adult jails lose out on the educational and psychological benefits offered by juvenile detention facilities and

Approximately two million adolescents a year are arrested and out of that two million, 60,000 of them are incarcerated according to the American Journal of Public Health. The 60,000 incarcerated adolescents each year are being tried as adults in court because of the serious crimes they have committed. The crimes they have committed are anything from armed robbery to murder. Some juveniles might be first time offenders and others might be repeat offenders. Crimes have always been a major issue in the United States and can cause controversy in the criminal justice system. Charging a minor as an adult in criminal court varies from state to state based on each state’s jurisdiction. Some states consider anyone up to the age of 18 still a juvenile and would not be charged as an adult in criminal court, but other states may charge a juvenile as an adult at the age of 16 or 17. Jordan (2014) states, “Although states already had methods for transferring youth to the adult system, as a result of the growing fear of juvenile violence, most states implemented new laws to increase the number of youth entering the adult criminal system’ (Bernard & Kurlychek, 2010; Torbet et al., 1996)” (p. 315). While it sounds beneficial to incarcerate more adolescents in the adult criminal justice system to avoid juveniles from committing crimes in the future, that is not always the case. Incarcerating these juveniles can be life changing in a negative

Whether Brandon Moore should be sentenced for life due to crimes he committed at age of fifteen, or receive a chance to parole.

Putting juveniles in Juvenile court where in you are peer rehabilitated through a more lenient way through a certain period of timenstead of adult courts tend to worsen their condition. Research has shown that peer exposure can worsen behavior of a Juvenile. Scholars found that rather than rehabilitating the morals of these young delinquents, juvenile detention that lumps troubled kids in with other troubled kids appeared to aggravate their behavior problems. Compared with other kids with a similar history of bad behavior, those who entered the juvenile-justice system were nearly seven times more likely to be arrested for crimes as adults.

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

For the juvenile court system is less than an adult court. The judge decides if the child will be tried as an adult do to the crime. Adult prison is a lot different. If the child is placed in prison, they may not be able to cope well in a correctional facility. Some teen or children cannot manage the challenges. They fall into depression because they feel like is no hope. This puts them a risk to do anything negative to themselves or others. Being in prison for a long time, they may pick up even worse behavior. One crime committed and now people think they are going to do it again. The crimes commit are serious and because of them, people think they should be in prison to reduce the crimes. To punishment or teach the child or teen to learn but it a serious way. People to not get the life the child will have when they are tried as an adult and in the

In the United States, juveniles have always known to cause trouble in the community. In recent times, many individuals have the perception that juvenile crimes are on the rise and that these offenders are getting younger. Charging juveniles as adult has always been a debate, because of their thinking process and protecting their rights. There are many cases that regard juveniles that have changed the policies of this nation. Also for those juveniles that are convicted as adults, there are many challenges that correctional officials have when housing them. Waivering juveniles to adult court has many factors to it and whether or not juveniles age thirteen and fourteen should be

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.

It is not uncommon for some juveniles to be housed in adult detention centers, however, do you believe juveniles should be housed with adults in prisons and jails? No, I absolutely do not believe that juveniles should be housed with adults in prison and jails. Consequently, I feel that this type of injunction can cause many risk factors including academic diminution, and cause mental risk factors as well. Nevertheless, housing juveniles with adults can cause not only mental risk factors but physical and sexual assault risk factors also. According to the read section in unit four” the crowding, violence, and exploitative relationships found in adult prisons make this disposition extremely questionable, furthermore, although some states have

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.

Yes, juveniles deserve life sentences in jail if they decide to commit a violent crime. This is because there is no effective deterrent to force them to think twice. Over the course of time, this has resulted in even more juveniles being arrested for these activities. Evidence of this can be seen with figures provided by the Center for Disease Control. ("Youth Violence," 2010)

Imagine sitting in a courtroom, hoping the the judge will not give a harsh sentence. Unfortunately, that’s the case for many juveniles, some as young as 13! A juvenile is subject to a more severe sentence with the limited sentencing available. It is estimated that 250,000 youth are prosecuted as adults, each year. This number should change, as juveniles are not adults, both mentally and physically. Juveniles need an environment surrounded with guiding adults, education and the resources to help them. A juvenile is not an adult, and should not be tried as one.

By law adolescents are not able to vote, purchase tobacco or alcohol, join the armed forces, or sign a legal contract. Children are not permitted the same rights and responsibilities as adults because the law recognizes their inability to make adult decisions. The law acknowledges that children are unable to handle the consequences that come along with the rights that adults have. By allowing them to be charged as adults is holding them to a double standard. Telling them that they are not old enough to enjoy the same luxuries as adults, but they can experience the same punishment as adults if they commit a crime. The law acknowledged the inability of children to make decisions but still allows them to suffer the same consequences as adults. Research demonstrates that transferring children from juvenile court to adult court does not decrease recidivism, and in fact actually increases crime. Instead of the child learning their mistake they are more likely to repeat it. Juvenile detention centers have programs that help reconstruct young minds and help them realize where they went wrong. Prison does not offer this same opportunity. (Estudillo, Mary Onelia)

Since the Juvenile Justice Court (JJC) was first established there has been a debate on when, and whether or not, Juveniles should be treated as adults when they commit heinous crimes. Prior to the establishment of the JJC, parents were responsible for the actions of their kids under the age of seven; juveniles were tried as adults. By establishing the JJC, teenagers were given privileges they previously had not held; such as being treated as delinquents rather than criminals when committing crimes that adults commit. Moreover, the Supreme Court has continued to give rights to juveniles by limiting the type of punishments that can be granted to juvenile delinquents. In the 2005 Roper vs. Simmons case, the Supreme Court ruled it unconstitutional for a juvenile delinquent to be given the death penalty. In the 2010 Graham v. Florida case, the Supreme Court ruled that it was unconstitutional to assign life without parole to a juvenile charged of a non-homicidal charge, and must be given an opportunity to prove themselves as mature and able of rehabilitation. Even further, the Supreme Court ruled that it was unconstitutional to sentences juveniles under the age of eighteen to life without parole in the 2012 Miller v. Alabama case. Because of court decisions like these, juvenile delinquents no longer have to face the consequences of their actions. The justice system was set in place in order to maintain justice and order. If it refuses to do that then a messages is being sent to