The Juvenile Justice System

Placing a juvenile in a detention center early in the court process increases the risk that youths will be found to be delinquent and damage their prospects for future success. A majority of the youths that are placed in these facilities pose little or no threat to the public and essentially do not need to be there. This portion of the juvenile court process is detrimental to the future and mental aspects of a youth’s life. We desperately need to change the way that we handle the juvenile court system because we are only reinforcing the delinquent behavior that these youths have been exposed to. We need to focus on the rehabilitation and prevention efforts for these youths not the punishment aspect and until then (insert a better ending).

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.

The adult court system does not have the resources to work with and rehabilitate youth (Seep, 2015). According to recent studies, teens sent through the adult court system are 5 times more likely to commit another crime after leaving jail compared to a teen sent through the juvenile court system (Brown, 2015). This is because the juvenile court system has resources to help teens learn from their mistakes and not make them again. As a society, we should want our teens to become educated and help make our society better. While the goal of the adult court system is to deter the convicted prisoner from committing another crime, the juvenile court system’s goal is to rehabilitate the youth and help them successfully integrate back into society (Seep,

The juvenile justice system varies from the adult justice system in many ways. For more than a century, the states have believed that the juvenile justice system was a means to ensuring public safety, by establishing and implementing a system that responds to children as they are maturing into adulthood. Today’s youths, however, are increasingly committing more serious crimes that in turn are raising the public’s criticism concerning the modern juvenile justice system. There are those who are in support of keeping every juvenile I juvenile court system and then there are the others who argue if juveniles were held to stricter standards they would not become repeat offender in the system and eventual end up in the adult corrections system.

The juvenile justice system is imperfect, at best, and part of this stems from the fact that juvenile justice, as a specific, discrete category of crime and punishment is still a relatively recent phenomenon. In fact, the notion of childhood and adolescence as distinct phases of human development is a novel idea that did not truly emerge until the twentieth century, so it is only natural that some elements of the juvenile justice system seem to have been made up they went along. Now, however, after substantial research into juvenile delinquency, it causes, and potential solutions, a much clearer picture of the phenomenon is emerging that will allow parents, teachers, legislators, and law enforcement officials to better reduce juvenile delinquency without imposing unnecessarily harsh restrictions of juveniles. By examining the history of the juvenile justice system alongside more recent research into juvenile delinquency, it will be possible to see how the most effective treatments going forward will likely focus on reducing risk before delinquency occurs and rehabilitating juveniles already in the justice system, as opposed to more punitive measures that mark juveniles as a criminal and thus hinder them for the rest of their lives.

When most people think about the American criminal justice system some of the first things that come to mind is corruption of officers and courts, or jails with prisoners. One of the last things that come to mind is the juvenile justice system. Nevertheless, nothing is more important than the juvenile justice system because the juveniles within the system are the future working class and citizens of America. Therefore, it is important that they receive the necessary punishment and rehabilitation to move past mistakes they previously made. However, there are aspects that push against the goal of rehabilitation in the juvenile justice system such as the misuse or lack of money, the harshness of the punishment, and the programs within the

he juvenile justice system has to deal with juveniles committing violations against civil and criminal law in their community. When compare to the adult criminal justice system, they are more harsher to the offenders than the juvenile justice system. I believe the juvenile justice systems should be more like the adult criminal justice system to a certain extent. It all depends what kind of crime was committed and if the juvenile had the intention of committing the crime. Of course if it's not a serious crime, I think parens patriae could be great for juveniles in need of support. There has been many philosophical differences about juvenile offending, and the one many people fall on is the status they are living in. Whether they come from an

The juvenile victim justice system is divided into the criminal justice system and the child protection system. Although its two different system, they work together to ensure the victims safety. The criminal justice system focuses on the crime itself whereas the child protection system focus on helping the child. After the initial report, a screening is done to see if there is enough information. If there is enough information, the investigation then starts. Child protective service will notify the police if there is any problem. The child might be taken for medical examination and mental health evaluation. To ensure the safety of the child, the investigators can take them into custody. Then the court will decide who to give the parental rights

When thinking of reforming the juvenile justice system one has to think; what can we do to make this better for everyone involve? There are some programs that can be implemented when trying to make a change in the juvenile system. The main thing is getting parents or the guardian more involved in the child’s whereabouts. Secondly the community where the youth will have a place to go and have something more constructive to do to keep them out of trouble. Law enforcement can get involved in giving ride along and having visits to the local jails or prisons from the youth to talk to some of the inmates. Crime in life isn’t racist at all it has a no age limit, no certain gender and no social status for most of those whom decide to partake in a criminal activity. From the beginning juveniles have been an issue with law enforcement, the question has always arisen of whom will take control without cruel and unusual punishment and assist with the rehabilitation and prevention future crime actions.

Overview: The criminal justice system is complex and in need of several types of reforms, this is especially true in the juvenile justice system. In 2012, there were 1,319,700 arrests of juveniles in the United States (OJJDP) and this includes both violent and non-violent offenses committed by those under the age of 18. Policy reforms can offer alternatives to the incarceration of young offenders, by providing mental health, or addiction rehabs for those that are in need of it rather than locking them up. This not only helps keep the amount of juveniles down but also can be a preventative in recidivism.

The first juvenile court in the United States was established in Chicago in 1899. The first juvenile court in the state of Georgia was in Fulton County in 1911, now there is one in every county. Juvenile courts in Georgia are controlled by a 1971 law known as the juvenile code. The philosophy of the juvenile courts is to protective of the child rather than punitive. The court must do what is best for the interest of the child while considering the best interest of society.

Kathleen Blanco governor of Louisiana from 2004 to 2008 said, “Think about it: Every educated person is not rich, but almost every education person has a job and a way out of poverty. So education is a fundamental solution to poverty.” Every year thousands of students exit our educational programs not knowing how to read or write. How can we help these people? Do we just to throw up our hands in the air hands and proclaim that is not my problem? According to the National Assessment of Adult Literacy (NAAL), two thirds of students who cannot read proficiently by the end of fourth grade will end up in jail or welfare. 85% of all juveniles who interface with the juvenile court system are functioning illiterate. More than 60% of all prison inmates

In reviewing the reading assignment, I do think the U.S. Juvenile Justice System serves the purpose for serious felonies. According to an article, the juvenile justice system also provides ways to help with skill development, habilitation, rehabilitation, addressing treatment needs as well as a way to successful reintegration of youth into the community (Youth.gov., n.d.) When a crime is committed, there should be consequences of his or her actions, however I do not think jail is always the answer, especially for the ones that are not adults. I think he or she should be mental evaluate to determine his or her mental state and then put into a rehabilitation program. Bentham was a theorist that believed and followed utilitarian principles, which

The American juvenile justice system is consistently developing to adhere to societal values, just as any individual or system in our surroundings. It is important to note that there is not one but several juvenile justice systems within the United States. Each state has its own set of laws governing their juvenile justice system (National Research Council Institute of Medicine, 2001, p. 155). 1899 was the beginning of a substantial shift in the rights of juveniles. However, with two opposing views of the protection of society and the rehabilitation of youth, several states have battled between adopting policies less stringent on youth and adopting policies like the 1990’s, “Get Tough” depriving youth of the protection of the Justice System (University of Pittsburgh, 2009).

The juvenile justice system is similar to the criminal justice system. This system is where juveniles are processed, and may be arrested after referrals for juvenile delinquency. Juvenile justice is very different in every state and can be very similar as well because every system has limited jurisdiction and that most focus on the offenders and not their offenses. Therefore, there are 51 juvenile justice systems in the United States. The United States has the juvenile justice system because children are very different than adults – in that they can be better receptive for change and also being easier to rehabilitate. Moreover, the main goal of the juvenile justice system is rehabilitation (Juvenile Law Center). The juvenile justice system is made up of police, courts, corrections, probation and parole services, as well as community-based programs to name a few (book).