Chapter 13

Juvenile Justice
 INTRODUCTION
• Most chronic juvenile offenders begin their delinquency
careers before age 12; some start as early as age 10.
• Juveniles account for 15% of violent crimes and 24% of
property crimes.
• Juvenile violent crime is decreasing
• Female delinquency is increasing
• The number of juvenile held in public facilities is increasing
• Minority juveniles are greatly
overrepresented in the
custody population.
 JUVENILE JUSTICE
• Juvenile: A youth at or below the upper age of juvenile court
jurisdiction in a particular state.

• Juvenile Justice System: The government agencies that

function to investigate, supervise, adjudicate, care for, or
confine youthful offenders and other children subject to the
jurisdiction of the juvenile court.
 JUVENILE JUSTICE THROUGHOUT HISTORY

• Delinquency
– Juvenile actions or conduct in violation of criminal law, juvenile
status offenses, and other juvenile misbehavior

• Before the modern era, children who committed crimes

in the Western world received no preferential treatment

• They were adjudicated and punished alongside adults

 Juvenile Justice Throughout History1

• Early philosophy in dealing with juveniles derived from

an ancient Roman principle called patria potesta
– Children were members of the family but the father had
absolute control over them

• Parens Patriae
– A common law principle that allows the state to assume a
parental role and to take custody of a child when he or she
becomes delinquent, is abandoned, or is in need of care that
the natural parents are unable or unwilling to provide.
 Juvenile Justice Throughout History2

• By the end of the 18th century, the Enlightenment

emphasized human potential
• By the middle of the nineteenth century “houses of
refuge” were developed to save children from lives of
crime and poverty

• The American “Child-Savers” Movement

– Reform school
– Led to the creation of the Chicago Reform School
– Focused on pre-delinquent youth
 The Juvenile Court Era

• In 1899, codification of Illinois juvenile law became the

model for juvenile court statutes throughout the nation

• The Illinois Juvenile Court Act created a juvenile court

– Applied the term “delinquent” rather than “criminal” to avoid
lasting stigma
– Judges were to serve as advocates for juveniles
– Determination of guilt or innocence took second place to the
betterment of the child
 The Juvenile Court Era1
The 1938 federal Juvenile Court Act was modeled
after the Illinois legislation; by 1945, every state
had enacted special legislation focusing on the
handling of juveniles.
• The key philosophical principles of the juvenile court
movement:
✓ The state is the “higher or ultimate parent.”
✓ Children are worth saving.
✓ Children should be nurtured.
✓ Justice needs to be individualized.
✓ The needs of the child mandate use of
noncriminal procedures.
The juvenile court movement was based on five
philosophical principles
 JUVENILE DEFINITIONS
Juvenile Court: Any court that has jurisdiction over matters involving
juveniles. .

1. Categories of Children in the Juvenile Justice System.

Delinquent Child: A child who has engaged in activity that would be

considered a crime if the child were an adult. The term delinquent is used to
avoid the stigma associated with the term criminal.

Undisciplined Child: A child who is beyond parental control, as evidenced by

his or her refusal to obey legitimate authorities, such as school officials and
teachers.

Dependent Child: A child who has no parents or whose parents are not
available or are unable to care for him or her.
Definitions Continued
 JUVENILE DEFINITIONS1
Neglected Child: A child who is not receiving the proper level of
physical or psychological care from his or her parents or
guardians or who has been placed up for adoption in violation of
the law.

Abused Child: A child who has been physically, emotionally or

sexually abused. Most states also consider a child who is forced
into delinquent activity by a parent or guardian to be abused.
 JUVENILE DEFINITIONS2
Status Offender: A child who commits an act that is
contrary to the law by virtue of the offender’s status as a
child. Purchasing cigarettes, buying alcohol, and being
truant are examples of such behavior.

Status Offense: An act or conduct that is declared by

statute to be an offense, but only when committed by or
engaged in by a juvenile, and that can be adjudicated only
by a juvenile court.
 The Juvenile Court Era2

• Juvenile court movement

– Applied the term “delinquent” rather than “criminal”
to avoid lasting stigma
– Judges were to serve as advocates for juveniles
– Determination of guilt or innocence took second
place to the betterment of the child
The Legal Environment
 The Legal Environment
1 of 2
• Kent v. U.S. (1966) ended the hands-off era in juvenile
justice and recognized that at least minimal due process must
be provided in juvenile court hearings.
• In the case of In re Gault (1967), the Court decided that
juveniles have a right to notice of charges, a right to counsel, a
right to confront and to cross-examine witnesses, and
constitutional protections against self-incrimination.
• In the case of In re Winship (1970), the Court held that
allegations of delinquency must be established beyond a
reasonable doubt, although status offenses can be established
with the preponderance of the evidence standard.
 The Legal Environment
2 of 2
• McKeiver v. Pennsylvania (1971) held that juveniles do
not have the constitutional right to a jury trial.
• Breed v. Jones (1975) severely restricted the conditions
under which transfers from juvenile to adult court may
occur, holding that such transfers must occur prior to an
adjudicatory hearing in juvenile court.
• Schall v. Martin (1984) upheld the practice of
preventive detention but stated that it cannot be
imposed without prior notice, an equitable detention
hearing, and a statement by the judge setting the reasons
for the detention.
 The Legal Environment1
Preventive detention cannot be imposed without:
• Prior notice
• An equitable detention hearing
• A statement by the judge setting forth the reasons for
detention

• Thompson v. Oklahoma (1988)

• Roper v. Simmons (2005)
• Graham v. Florida (2010)
 The Legal Environment2
• In Thompson v. Oklahoma (1988), the Court prohibited the
execution of any offender under the age of 16 at the time of
the crime and in Roper v. Simmons (2005) this was extended
to offenders committing capital crimes under the age of 18.
• Graham v. Florida (2010) The Court held that the 8th
Amendment ban on cruel and unusual punishment extends to
the sentencing of juveniles to life in prison for a crime not
involving homicide.
• In Miller v. Alabama (2012), the Court ruled that state laws
requiring the sentencing of juveniles convicted of murder to a
term of life in prison without parole are unconstitutional.
Legislation Concerning Juvenile Justice
 Legislation Concerning Juvenile
Justice1
The PROTECT Act of 2003 (also known as the
Amber Alert Law) provides federal funding to
states to ensure the creation of a national
AMBER network.
Legislation Concerning Children and Justice

• Participating states had to meet two conditions:

1. Agree to a “sight and sound separation mandate”
2. Status offenders had to be deinstitutionalized

• Reauthorized funding of JJDP in 1980

– Separation mandate was expanded to require that separate
juvenile jails be constructed by the states
– By 1988, nearly half of the states had failed to come into
“substantial compliance” with the new jail and lockup removal
mandate

• Disproportionate minority confinement (DMC) - refers

to the disproportionate number of minority youth who
come into contact with the juvenile justice system.
 The Legal Rights of Juveniles
• Most states have statutes extending Miranda provisions
to juveniles but it is unclear whether juveniles can
legally waive their Miranda rights.

• In New Jersey v. T.L.O. (1985), the Supreme Court ruled

that schoolchildren have a reasonable expectation of
privacy in personal property.

• • In J.D.B. v. North Carolina (2011), the Court held that

the age of suspects must be considered when
determining whether they would feel free not to
respond to police questioning.
 The Legal Rights of Juveniles1
A search would be considered reasonable if:
The Juvenile Justice Process Today

• A few states have set the age at 16 or 17 for juvenile

court jurisdiction

• Exclusive jurisdiction applies when the juvenile court is

the only court that has statutory authority

• All 50 states have provisions that allow juveniles who

commit serious crimes to be bound over to criminal
court
Juvenile Court Jurisdiction

Fig. 13-3
 The Juvenile Justice Process Today1
Where juvenile court authority is not exclusive, the jurisdiction of the court
may be original or concurrent

Original jurisdiction means Concurrent jurisdiction

that a particular offense must exists where other courts have
originate with juvenile court equal statutory authority to
authorities, and juvenile courts originate proceedings
have original jurisdiction over
most delinquency petitions and
all status offenses
Adult and Juvenile Justice Compared

Juvenile court philosophy differs from the adult system

• Reduced concern with legal issues of guilt or innocence and an
emphasis on the child’s best interest
• Emphasis on treatment rather than punishment
• Privacy and protection from public scrutiny through the use of
sealed records, etc.
• Use of the techniques of social science in dispositional decision-
making
• No long-term confinement
• Separate facilities for juveniles
• Broad discretionary alternatives at all points in the process
Juvenile Justice System
How the System Works
 How the System Works1
• Teen Court
– An alternative to juvenile justice in which alleged
offenders are judged and/or sentenced by a jury of
their peers
– Hundreds of teen courts are in operation across the
country

• Juvenile Disposition
– The decision of a juvenile court
that concludes a dispositional
Hearing.
 How the System Works2

• Most judges decide not to confine juveniles

• Probationary disposition usually means that juveniles

will be released into the custody of a parent or guardian
and ordered to undergo some form of training,
education, or counseling
 Secure Institutions for Juveniles
• Most confined juveniles are held in semi-secure
facilities
– Designed to look less like prison and more like
residential high school campuses
– Halfway houses, “boot camps,” ranches, forestry
camps, wilderness programs, group homes

• The operative philosophy of custodial programs for

juveniles focuses squarely on the rehabilitative ideal
Secure Institutions for Juveniles1
• Juveniles are usually committed to secure facilities for
indeterminate periods of time

• Typical stay is less than one year

• Release is often timed to coincide with the beginning or

the end of the school year

• Most juvenile facilities are small, with 80% designed to

hold 40 residents or fewer
 Characteristics of Juveniles in
Confinement
• The majority (85.5%) were male
• 39.4% Caucasian, 38.9% African American, 17.3%
Hispanic
• About 6.5% institutionalized for committing a status
offense
• Less than half (42.4%) were in residential facilities for a
serious personal or property crime
• Only 1% were charged with homicide
Overcrowding in Juvenile Facilities
• Overcrowding exists in many juvenile institutions

• Problems occur with living space, health care, security,

and control of suicidal behavior

• Drug/alcohol offenders is the fastest-growing category

of detained juveniles

• Juvenile corrections has become increasingly privatized,

and a number of states use private facilities
END