Juvenile Justice in
America
SOC 106
Part 2 - The Nature and Extent of
Delinquency
1.
A nation of juvenile delinquency
- legal definition
- behavioral definition
a. Legal
- labeled by the court
(1) Brought to court
- found guilty
(2) Eyes of law and society
- juvenile is a delinquent
b. Behavioral
- violates a law
- whether caught or not
- still a delinquent
(1) People see delinquent act
- do not call police
- still a delinquent
(2) Arrested but not charged
- dropped from system
- not legally labeled delinquent
(a) Still a delinquent
- eyes of police / public
(b) Behavior can also label
- whether delinquent or not
(c) Hair color / dress
- chains / black clothing
c. Two methods for dealing with delinquents
- classical view / positivist view
- differing views
(1) Classical
- deterrence / incapacitation / punish
- today’s society
(2) Positivist
- treatment / education / rehabilitation
- what is most ‘positive’ for youth
- belief of Child Savers
2. National Conference of Commissioners
on Uniform State Laws – 1968
- not all states followed
- states still operated individually
a. Definitions:
(1) Child - “An individual who is under 18
years of age or under the age of 21
years who committed an act of
delinquency before reaching the age of
18 years.”
(2) Delinquent act - “An act designated
a crime under the law.”
(3) Delinquent child - “A child who has
committed a delinquent act and in
need of treatment or rehabilitation.”
(4) Defined unruly child / deprived child /
and custodian
b. Purpose of the act:
(1) To provide care, protection, and
wholesome moral, mental, and physical
development of children coming within
its provisions.
(2) Consistent with the protection of the
public interest, to remove from children
committing delinquent acts the taint of
criminality and the consequences of
criminal behavior and to substitute
therefore a program of treatment,
training, and rehabilitation.
(3) To achieve the foregoing purposes in a
family environment, whenever possible,
separating the child from his parents
only when necessary for his welfare or in
the interest of public safety.
(4) To provide a simple judicial procedure
through which this act is executed and
enforced and in which the parties are
assured a fair hearing and their
constitutional and other legal rights
recognized and enforced.
(5) To provide simple interstate procedures
which permit a resort to cooperative
measures among the juvenile courts of
the several states when required to
effectuate the purposes of this act.
National Conference of Commissioners:
(1) Probation services
- both state / local
(a) Adequately trained
- work loads limited
- conditions established
- required time / attention
(b) Duties include:
- investigate / report / recommend
- receive / examine complaint /
charges
- supervise / assist
- appropriate referrals
- custody / detain
(i) Probation officers
- no police powers
(ii) Incompatible role
(2) Court services
- superior court
- part time / full time
- referee / commissioner
d. Other aspects:
(1) Transfer from criminal court
- defendant under 18
- time of offense
- transferred to juvenile court
(a) Remand hearings
- before juvenile court
(2) Venue / transfer
- take place in county
- where juvenile lives
- ask case be transferred
(3) Take into custody:
(a) Court order
- issued by juvenile court
- signed by judge
(b) Laws of arrest
- violate written law
- detain / custody
(c) By police if:
- illness / injury
- immediate danger
- runaway
(d) Act states: “The taking of a child
into custody is not an arrest, except
for the purpose of determining its
validity under the Constitution of
the state or of the United States.”
(e) Not hold in confinement
- unless necessary to assure
appearance
(f) Can be held in:
- detention center / shelter /
foster home
- other suitable place designated
by juvenile court
(4) Petition (filing document)
- necessary facts
- bring to court
(a) Must include:
- facts of wrongful act
- name / age / residence
- name / residence of parents /
guardian / custodian / spouse
(b) Any one can make petition
- law enforcement / public
(c) Not filed until:
- probation determines
- interest of child / public
3.
Juvenile Justice Act: Washington state – 1977
a. “It is the intent of the legislature that a
system capable of having primary
responsibility for, being accountable for,
and responding to the needs of youthful
offenders, as defined by this chapter, be
established.”
b. “It is the further intent of this legislature that
youth, in turn, be held accountable for their
offenses and both communities and the
juvenile courts carry out their functions
consistent with this intent. To effectuate
these policies, it shall be the purpose of this
chapter to:
(1) Protect the citizenry from criminal
behavior
(2) Provide for determining whether
accused juveniles have committed
offenses as defined by this chapter.
(3) Make the juvenile offender accountable
for his or her criminal behavior.
(4) Provide for punishment commensurate
with the age, crime, criminal history of
the juvenile offender.
(7) thru (13): due process / treatment /
custody / supervision / restitution /
funding.
(14) Provide for a clear policy to determine
what types of offenders shall receive
punishment, treatment, or both.
c. Goal of Juvenile Justice Act:
- commit serious offender
- help minor offender
4.
Washington law
a. Take into custody under following
circumstances:
(1) Pursuant to court order
- complaint filed with court
- violation of court order
- violation of probation
(a) Complaint (petition) filed by
prosecutor
(2) Without a court order:
- arrest by police officer
- grounds exist for arrest of adult in
identical circumstances
- no arrest for status offenses
(3) Material witness hold
- protection of the child
(4) Parole suspended
- can be arrested
- returned to state institution
b. Juvenile detention
- probable cause
(1) Offense / violate terms / fail to appear
- can be held
(2) Protect juvenile
- from self
(3) Protect community
- poses threat
(4) Intimidate witnesses
- interferes with case
(5) Commits another crime
(6) Parole suspended
(7) Material witness
- protect child
(a) No definition for juvenile
delinquency in Washington state
(b) Juvenile offender
- “Any juvenile who has been found
by the juvenile court to have
committed an offense.”
c. Sources of criminal data
- Uniform Crime Report (Federal Bureau of
Investigation)
- Monitoring the Future (juvenile survey)
- National Crime Victimization Survey
- Self-Report Studies
(1) First 4 years
- child abuse highest
- Uniform Crime Report
(a) Infant (under 1 year)
- average: 200 murders
(b) Baby (1 to 4 years)
- average: 320 murders
(c) Highest:
- child abuse
(d) To survive:
- life’s essentials: love / care /
needs satisfied
(2) Learning process
- next 10 years
- from watching / doing
- those around us
(a) Form: personalities / character /
morals / likes / dislikes
(b) Positive reinforcement
- from family
- from peer group
(c) Accept reinforcement
- actions that brought praise
(d) Need positive reinforcement
- family / teachers / community
(e) High school
- established beliefs / behavior
(f) Change delinquent behavior
- very difficult
5.
Labeling process
- placed on people
- as a society / as individuals
a. High school
- jocks / nerds / druggies / socials / brains
(1) Push into role
- avoid / stigmatize
(a) Druggie:
- not socialize with
(b) Nerd:
- avoid
- not stigmatized
(2) Because of labeling
- we avoid
(a) Accept negative reinforcement
- continue in role
- associate with “nerds”
- start using
(b) Associate with those individuals
(3) Label as a society
- work / neighborhood / town
(a) Neighborhood prank
- labeled delinquent
(b) Work
- gets fired
- worthless / delinquent / failure
b. What is labeling?
- descriptive word / phrase
- apply to: person / group / theory
(1) Important: study of juvenile delinquency
- not juvenile studied
- the social audience
- does labeling
(2) Beginning of studies:
- Charles Cooley: 1902
- book: theory / process
(a) “Looking Glass Self”
- see themselves
- imagine defined by others
(b) Can come from:
- peers / elders
(3) Theory:
- criminal created
- way society treats actions
(a) Shoot store clerk
- labeled “killer”
(b) Shoot town bully
- labeled “protector”
(4) Characteristics
- no act intrinsically criminal
- until society says
- pass a law
(a) Definitions / labels
- enforced
- interest of society
(b) Criminal definition / label
- interest of powerful groups
- or representatives
- police / courts