Chapter 14
Juvenile
Justice
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Juveniles in the U.S.
.
• In 2000, police arrested 140,000
youths age 12 and younger.
• These younger offenders
represent almost 10% of the
total number of juvenile
arrestees.
Source: Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Report - 2000
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Juveniles in the U.S.
• 2.8 million juveniles are arrested
annually in America.
• Violent crimes by juveniles are
decreasing.
• Female delinquency has
increased 76% in last decade.
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Juveniles in the U.S.
• Minority juveniles are
overrepresented in the
custody population.
• Crowding is a serious
problem in juvenile
facilities.
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Juvenile Involvement in Crime v. System Totals, 2000
Source: Federal Bureau of Investigation, Crime in the United States, 2000 (Washington,
D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office, 2000).
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Number of Homicides by Offenders Aged 14-17,
Projections Through 2001
Source:James Alan Fox Trends in Juvenile Violence, (Washington, D.C.: Bureau of Justice
Statistics, 2001).
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History of Juvenile Justice
Around 753 BCE
Roman law - Children had
membership in their family, but
the father had absolute control
over children.
Patria postestas led to the English
concept of “parens patriae.”
patria postestas – The power of
father extended to issues of life
and death for all members of the
family including slaves, spouses,
and children.
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History of Juvenile Justice
• “parens patriae” – Common
law principle that allows
state to take custody of a
child when s/he becomes
delinquent, is abandoned,
or is in need of care, which
the natural parents are unable
or unwilling to provide.
• Originally, the king was
considered the father of the
country and thus had parental
rights over all his citizens.
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History of Juvenile Justice
Middle Ages
• Church strongly influenced conception of children.
• English Common Law adopted the Church
perspective about children under 7 in relation to
law violations.
• At this time, Church view was that children under
age 7 had not yet reached the age of reason,
therefore, they could not be held liable for
spiritual offenses.
• Under English law, individuals between 7 and
14 were accorded special status as
juveniles, while adulthood began at 14.
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History of Juvenile Justice
United States
• Puritan influence was dominant during
early colonial period. The focus was
on obedience and discipline.
• Laws reflected teachings of the Bible.
• Juveniles and adults were mixed in both
jails and prisons.
• Punishments were severe to protect
colony from the wrath of God.
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History of Juvenile Justice
Massachusetts Law in 1600’s
“If a man has a stubborn or rebellious son of
sufficient years of understanding, viz.
sixteen, which will not obey the voice of his
father or the voice of his mother…, then shall
his father and mother, …lay hold on him and
bring him to the magistrate … testify to them
by sufficient evidence that this their son is
stubborn and rebellious and will not obey
their voice and chastisement, …. Such a son
shall be put to death.”
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History of Juvenile Justice
European Enlightenment Period – 1600 and 1700’s
• This period rejected supernatural
explanations in favor of scientific ones.
• During this time, there was growth in the
industrial economy and a move away
from farming.
• It reassessed the place of children in
society.
• Children were recognized as heirs to the
future and there was concern for that
future.
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History of Juvenile Justice
Institutional Era – 1800’s
Houses of Refuge
• Society for the Prevention of
Pauperisim established first house
of refuge in New York City (1824).
• They were designed to save children
from lives of poverty and crime.
• They housed mostly thieves,
vagrants and runaways.
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History of Juvenile Justice
Institutional Era – 1800’s
Child Saver Movement
• mid 1800’s
• combined Christian principles with
strong emphasis on worth of
individual
• guide and protect children
• Anthony Platt, The Child Savers: The
Invention of Delinquency,
(University of Chicago Press, 1977)
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History of Juvenile Justice
1860 – Chicago Reform School
• product of child savers movement
• focused on predelinquent youth who
showed propensity for more
serious crimes
• emphasized traditional values and
hard work
• idealized country living, causing
several reform schools to be farms
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History of Juvenile Justice
Juvenile Court Era
1870 - Massachusetts passed
legislation requiring separate
hearings for juveniles.
1877 - New York passed law requiring
separate hearings and prohibiting
contact between juvenile and
adult offenders.
1898 - Rhode Island passed juvenile
court legislation.
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History of Juvenile Justice
1899 - Illinois Juvenile Court Act created a
juvenile court, separate in form and
function from adult criminal courts. It
was considered to be the first juvenile
court system in the United States.
1938 - federal level - Juvenile Court Act
included many features of the Illinois
Act.
1945 - By this year, every state had legislation
focusing on juveniles.
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History of Juvenile Justice
Juvenile court based on
five principles:
a) State is “higher or
ultimate parent” of all
children.
b) The belief that children are
worth saving, and that nonpunitive procedures should
be used.
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History of Juvenile Justice
c)The belief that children should be
nurtured while being protected.
d)Justice for children should be
individualized.
e)Non-criminal procedures are
necessary, and denial of due
process can be justified
because intent is to “help” not
punish.
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Categories of Children
1930’s
• delinquent - Children who
violated the criminal law, and if
adults, would be charged with
the offense.
• undisciplined - Children said to
be beyond parental control and
therefore in need of state
protection.
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Categories of Children
• dependent - Children who
typically have no parents to
care for them or have been
abandoned or placed for
adoption.
• neglected - Children who did
not receive proper care from
parents or guardians.
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Categories of Children
• abused - Children who suffered
physical abuse at the hands of
their custodians. This was
expanded to include emotional
and sexual abuse.
• status offenders - A special
category which embraces laws
written only for children
(truancy, curfew, runaway, etc.).
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Explanation of Delinquency
•
•
•
•
•
•
social ecology (1920’s and 1930’s)
delinquent boys (1955)
techniques of neutralization (1957)
opportunity theory (1960)
cohort analysis (1960’s)
drift (1964)
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Social Ecology
Clifford Shaw and Henry McKay (1930’s)
• Social ecology focused on misbehavior
of lower class youths, primarily as
the result of social disorganization.
• social disorganization – A condition
that exists when a group is faced
with social change, uneven cultural
development, maladaptiveness,
disharmony, conflict, and lack of
consensus.
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Social Ecology
Chicago Area Project (1930’s)
1) first large scale delinquency
prevention program
2) created self-help centers
a) staffed by community volunteers
b) offered variety of counseling
services, educational programs,
camps, recreational activities, and
discussion groups
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Opportunity Theory
Lloyd E. Ohlin and Richard A. Cloward (1960)
Delinquency & Opportunity: A
Theory of Delinquent Gangs
• Delinquency is a result of a lack
of legitimate opportunities for
lower class youth.
• Lower class youth alienated
from middle-class institutions.
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Opportunity Theory
Mobilization for Youth
A. federally funded program
B. based on theory of Ohlin and Cloward
C. designed to increase legitimate
opportunities for lower class youth
D. provided:
1. job placement services
2. skill training
3. hired youth to work on community
projects
4. midnight basketball – keeping schools
open in evening for study sessions
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Delinquent Boys
Albert K. Cohen (1955)
Delinquent Boys, the Culture of the Gang
Delinquency, especially gang
related, is a response to
frustrations of the lower class when
they find they cannot share in the
rewards of the middle-class
lifestyle.
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Techniques of Neutralization
Gresham Sykes and David Matza (1957)
• They recognized the role of choice in
delinquent behavior.
• The delinquent typically drifts between
conformity and law violation and will
choose the latter when social norms
can be denied or explained away.
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Cohort Analysis
Marvin Wolfgang
• cohort - A group of individuals
sharing similarities of age, place, or
birth and residence.
• cohort analysis - A social science
technique by which cohorts are
tracked over time in order to
identify unique and observable
behavioral traits which characterize
them.
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Cohort Analysis
Marvin Wolfgang
Wolfgang’s 1960 study of a
Philadelphia cohort found:
• A small group of individuals
committed majority of the crime
(“chronic few”).
• 18% of cohort accounted for 52%
of all arrests.
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Pathways to Delinquency
1.authority conflict pathway
2.the covert pathway
3.the overt pathway
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Drug and Alcohol Abuse
Monitoring the Future
• The survey annually measures
drug abuse among high
school and college students.
• In 2000, the survey found that,
overall, illicit drug use
remains widespread.
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Drug and Alcohol Abuse
Monitoring the Future
• Over half (54%) have tried an
illicit drug by the time they
finish high school.
• Marijuana is the most widely
used illicit drug.
• Largest increase is for
“ecstasy.”
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Violence
• Approximately 800 homicides are
committed by juveniles annually.
• In 2000, there was an average of 3
homicides per day.
• Older juvenile victims tend to be
male and African American.
• Younger victims are killed by family
members.
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Drug-Related Arrests of Juveniles, 1985 - 2000
Source: Federal Bureau of Investigation, Crime in the United States, (Washington, D.C.: U.S.
Government Printing Office, various years).
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Gangs
National Youth Gang Survey - 1999
50% of gang members in 1999
were ages 18-24.
Race/ethnicity:
 Hispanic 47%,
 African American 31%,
 Caucasian 13%,
 Asian 7%,
 Other 2%
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Gangs
• Males are more involved in gang
activity than females.
• Gang members are more likely to
have sold crack cocaine
and be involved in
organized drug dealing.
• Nationally, the average age for
joining a gang is 12.8 years of age.
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Runaways
1,800,000 children are missing
each year. Approximately 583,000
are runaways.
• 1/3 of all runaways leave home
because of sexual abuse.
• 1/2 leave because of beatings.
• 1/5 of runaways come into
contact with the police or
social service agencies.
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Throwaways
Children no longer wanted by their parents.
The remaining children
(800,000) are part of family
abductions and children
who are lost through
accidents, injury, or
misadventure.
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Sexual Abuse
A 2001 report by University of
Penn’s Center found that child
sexual abuse, child sexual assault,
and child sexual exploitation are
committed by a discrete group of
perpetrators.
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Other Forms of Abuse
Child Abuse
Children “who had been abused
or neglected…were more likely to
be arrested as juveniles, as
adults, and for violent crime.”
Source: Charles DeWitt, The Cycle of Violence, National Institute of Justice,
1992.
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Reports of Child Abuse and Neglect, 1976-1998
Source: National Committee to Prevent Child Abuse
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Teen Suicide
1960 - Only 475 teen suicides
recorded.
1991 - 1,899 teen suicides reported.
1997 - Suicide has become the 4th
major cause of death among
5-14 year old children.
1998 - Upwards of 10,000 teen
suicides reported.
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Teen Suicide
American Academy of Child and
Adolescent Psychiatry
reports the following may be indicators of
a suicidal teenager:
• change in eating habits
• change in sleeping patterns
• withdrawal from friends, family
members and school activities
• rebellious or violent behavior
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Teen Suicide
•
•
•
•
•
running away
drug or alcohol abuse
decline in school work/grades
constant boredom
frequent headaches, fatigue,
stomachaches
• disregard for personal hygiene
• giving away of favorite possessions
• verbal clues such as “This is the last
time we will be together.”
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What Can Be Done?
“A healthy home environment,
one in which parents and
children share affection,
cohesion, and environment,
reduces the risk of
delinquency.” study by the OJJPD
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Supreme Court Decisions
Kent v. U.S. (1966)
Facts of Case:
• Morris Kent (14 years old) was arrested in
Washington D.C. in 1959 and charged with
several burglaries and attempted purse
snatching.
• Kent was placed on probation and released.
• In September, 1961, a person entered a
woman’s apartment in Washington D.C.,
raped the woman, and took her wallet.
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Supreme Court Decisions
• Fingerprints matching Kent were left behind.
• Kent, still under court jurisdiction, was taken
into custody and interrogated.
• Kent spoke about the crime and other
offenses.
• After interrogation, Kent’s mother employed
legal counsel.
The case ended “hands-off” era in
juvenile justice.
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Supreme Court Decisions
• Kent was transferred to adult criminal court,
without discussion with Kent’s attorney
or Kent’s mother, based on
psychological and psychiatric exams
given to Kent.
• Kent was tried and found guilty in adult
court and sentenced to 5-15 years on
each of eight counts of robbery and
burglary.
• Kent’s attorneys appealed, based on lack of
hearing regarding the transfer.
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Supreme Court Decisions
Court upheld appeal and ordered
adequate hearings for juveniles
being considered for transfer to
adult court.
Juveniles are entitled to
representation by attorneys at
such hearings.
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Supreme Court Decisions
Importance of Case
This was the first time the
Supreme Court recognized the
need for at least minimal due
process in
juvenile court
hearings.
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Supreme Court Decisions
In re Gault (1967)
• Gerald Gault and a friend, Ronald Lewis,
were taken into custody on June 8, 1964,
based on a neighbor’s complaint that the
boys had made lewd telephone calls.
• Gault was already on probation when he was
taken into custody.
• Gault’s parents were at work when he was
picked up, and no notification was
provided to them about the arrest.
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Supreme Court Decisions
• Gault’s parents learned from another
neighbor that Gerald had been taken
into custody.
• Gault’s family appealed.
• Gault’s parents were informed about a
hearing that was to be held, but not
the nature of the complaint, nor who
the complainant was, who was not
present at the hearing.
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Supreme Court Decisions
• At the hearing, Gault was not
represented by counsel.
• Gault admitted dialing the phone,
but not to making the lewd
comments.
• After the hearing, Gault was
adjudicated delinquent and
sentenced until his 21st birthday.
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In re Gault (1967)
Appeal based on six points
•
notice of charges - Gault was not given
notice to prepare a reasonable defense.
•
right to counsel - Gault was not notified of
his right to counsel or to have an attorney
present at hearing.
•
right to confront/cross examine witnesses Complainant can be required to be
present at hearing.
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In re Gault (1967)
Appeal based on six points
• Protection against self-incrimination Gault was never advised he had the
right to remain silent, nor that his
testimony could be used against him.
• right to transcript - Gault’s attorney was
not provided with a copy of the
transcript to file an appeal.
• right to appeal - At time of Gault’s case,
Arizona did not provide right to appeal.
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In re Gault (1967)
U.S. Supreme Court held for Gault based on
four of six issues related to due process:
• notice of charges
• right to counsel
• right to confront/cross examine witnesses
• protection against self-incrimination
Court rejected the other two issues:
• right to transcript
• right to appeal
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Supreme Court Decisions
In re Winship (1970)
• Winship, age 12, was charged with
illegally entering a locker and stealing
$112 from a pocketbook.
• New York judge found Winship delinquent.
• Judge acknowledged that the evidence
might not have been sufficient to
establish Winship’s guilt beyond a
reasonable doubt (New York law only
required a preponderance of the
evidence).
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Supreme Court Decisions
• Winship was sent to a training school for
18 months.
• Winship’s attorney appealed based on
the standard of evidence used.
• U.S. Supreme Court upheld appeal
establishing proof beyond a
reasonable doubt as standard in
juvenile proceedings of delinquency.
• Court still allows a preponderance of
evidence in juvenile cases where the
juvenile is charged with a status
offense.
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Supreme Court Decisions
Breed v. Jones (1970)
• Jones, age 17, was charged with
committing an armed robbery.
• At adjudicatory hearing, Jones was
found delinquent.
• At “dispositional” hearing, Jones was
found unfit for treatment as a
juvenile.
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Supreme Court Decisions
• Jones was transferred to adult
criminal court and subsequently
found guilty of robbery. He was
committed to the California Youth
Authority.
• Jones’s attorney appealed based on
issue of double jeopardy because
he had already been adjudicated a
delinquent.
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Supreme Court Decisions
U.S. Supreme Court upheld appeal
of Jones, pointing to the fact that
the double jeopardy clause speaks
in terms of “potential risk of trial
and conviction - not punishment”
and concluded that two separate
adjudicatory processes were
sufficient to warrant a finding of
double jeopardy.
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Supreme Court Decisions
McKeiver v. Pennsylvania (1971)
• Joseph McKeiver, age 16, was charged
with robbery, larceny, and receiving
stolen property – all felonies in
Pennsylvania.
• McKeiver had been involved with 20-30
boys who chased three other juveniles
and took 25 cents from them.
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Supreme Court Decisions
• McKeiver had no prior arrests.
• His attorney requested a jury
trial but was denied.
• McKeiver was adjudicated a
delinquent.
• Attorney appealed the
adjudication.
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Supreme Court Decisions
• U.S. Supreme Court denied the
appeal, holding that trials for
juveniles were not mandated
by the Constitution.
• Today, approximately 12 states
voluntarily provide jury trials
for juveniles.
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The Juvenile Justice Process
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Legal Aspects of Juvenile Justice
• Most jurisdictions today have
statutes designed to extend
the Miranda provisions to
juveniles.
• Juvenile rights may extend to
investigative procedures
and searches.
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Differences Between Juvenile and
Adult Systems
Juvenile
Adult
• focus on delinquency
• limits rights of juveniles
against unreasonable
searches
• provides rights against
self-incrimination
• focus on criminality
• provides for
comprehensive
rights against
unreasonable
searches of
person, home, and
possession
• provides rights
against selfincrimination
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Differences Between Juvenile and
Adult Systems
Juvenile
Adult
• focuses on interests
of the child
• helping context
• petitions or
complaints
legitimize
apprehension
• assumes innocence
until proven guilty
• adversarial setting
• arrest warrants - the
basis of most
arrests
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Differences Between Juvenile and
Adult Systems
Juvenile
Adult
• provide for right to an
attorney
• closed hearing and no
right to jury trial
• protection and
treatment - the goals
• provide for right to an
attorney
• public trial and right to
jury trial
• punishment and
reformation - the
goals
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Differences Between Juvenile and
Adult Systems
Juvenile
Adult
• specific right to
treatment
• sealed records; may
be destroyed at a
specific age
• released into parental
custody
• separate facilities at
all levels
• no right to treatment
• public record of trial
and judgment
• possibility of bail or
release on
recognizance
• possible incarceration
in adult correctional
facility
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How the System Works
Viewed as a process.
Four Stages:
1.
2.
3.
4.
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intake
adjudication
disposition
postadjudication review
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How the System Works
• intake - The first step in decision
making regarding a juvenile
whose behavior or alleged
behavior is in violation of law
or could otherwise cause a
juvenile court to assume
jurisdiction.
• detention hearings – These are
conducted by a juvenile court
judge.
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Limit of Juvenile Court Jurisdiction Over Young
Offenders by State
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How the System Works
Preliminary Hearing
• Preliminary hearing may be held in
conjunction with detention
hearing.
• Juvenile is advised of his/her rights
at this hearing.
• The purpose is to determine if there
is probable cause to believe the
juvenile committed the alleged act.
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How the System Works
At this time, a transfer to adult court
hearing may be held.
Transfer hearings focus on:
• applicability of transfer status to the
case under consideration
• whether juvenile is amenable to
treatment through available
resources in juvenile system
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How the System Works
Adjudication
• adjudicatory hearing - The
courtroom stage at the juvenile
level, which is similar in
substance to a criminal hearing
or trial.
• An emphasis is placed on privacy.
• Adjudicatory hearings tend to be
less formal than a criminal trial.
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How the System Works
Adjudication
• Hearings normally are completed in a
couple of hours.
• Proof beyond a reasonable doubt is
required in delinquent cases, while
preponderance of evidence is
necessary in cases involving status
offenses .
• Focus is still the best interests of the
juvenile.
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Juvenile Custody Rates, by State
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How the System Works
Disposition
• dispositionary hearing - The final stage in
processing of adjudicated juveniles, in which
decision is made on the form of treatment or
penalty which should be imposed.
• Judge typically has wider range of dispositions
than do judges in adult criminal cases.
• Because rehabilitation is the primary objective,
the judge is likely to select the “least
restrictive alternative.”
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Secure Institutions
Characteristics of Juveniles in Confinement
• 86.5% are male.
• 58.5% are ethnic minorities or African
American.
• 42.4% are incarcerated for a serious
personal or property offense.
• 2% are charged or adjudicated for
homicide or murder.
• 6.5% are incarcerated for a status
offense.
Source: Bureau of Justice Statistics Report
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Overcrowding in Facilities
• Overcrowding occurs in many
juvenile facilities.
• Half of all states report
overcrowding in juvenile
facilities.
• 22 states are operating facilities
at more than 50% over
capacity.
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Overcrowding in Facilities
• Fastest growing category involves
alcohol and drug offenders .
• Most juvenile appeals are not as
consequential as adult
convictions.
• Most appellate courts do not have
the time to hear the case before
the juvenile sentence is
completed.
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Post-Juvenile Court Era
2000 report by National Institute
of Justice claims:
“Changes in juvenile law and
juvenile court procedure are
slowly dismantling the
jurisdictional border between
juvenile and criminal justice.”
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