Juvenile Offenders Juvenile offenders are classified in most systems as people who have not yet reached the age of maturity, which by law is the threshold of your adult years. 18 years old is the line between being a teenager and a full grown adult when they will be able to be tried for a criminal offense, while fourteen years old is the youngest age a person can be tried for a seriously violent crime.
In the text it states, “Juvenile crime has been a feature of almost every society, but how authorities choose to deal with it has varied according to time and place. (Juvenile Offenders”). The legal system created facilities called reform schools, which were made to rehabilitate the juvenile delinquent and keep them separate from the adult population. While many people think that system is a good way to help juveniles, others don’t agree with what is going on and how they are being handled. The juvenile detention system does not affect the offender in a constructive way and seems only to cause more problems for the juvenile.
Therefore the present system should not be in existence because it is not producing the desired effect on the youth. Juvenile offenders are put at risk every single day that they are put in jails that were originally meant for adults. Many people are trying to separate the youth from the mature portion of the jailed population. In the text it states, “It is extremely risky to keep youths safe in adult jails. When youths are placed in adult jails, youth are at great risk of physical and sexual assault. (“Placing Juveniles in the Adult Criminal Justice System is Counterproductive”). This is not only a major factor to put into perspective of what is wrong with the system, but it also will affect the youth on dangerous levels, both mentally and physically, and they could become even more aggressive and unstable than the reason for which they were originally confined.
Although the separation of the juvenile from the adult population may seem to be the simple solution to this problem, further research reveals that it actually creates another problem. Separating youth from adults in jail can reduce the physical or emotional harm that may result from contact with adult offenders, but unfortunately these youths are often placed in isolation. ” (“Placing Juveniles in the Adult Criminal Justice System is Counterproductive”). Placing youths in isolation could result in a variety of scenarios. The most obvious one would have to be a severe case of depression from having little to no human contact.
This has been shown to affect many youths put in isolation for several years. The literature states, “Even limited exposure to such an environment can cause anxiety, paranoia, exacerbate existing mental disorders, and increase risk of suicide. ” (“Placing Juveniles in the Adult Criminal Justice System is Counterproductive”). Further, the isolation problem is compounded by virtue of the fact that jail staff are simply not equipped to protect youth from the dangers of the adult jails.
Juveniles are put in these jails with a goal to improve themselves and their social standing. They are made to deal with the penalty for the crime they have inflicted upon society and are made to learn what they did wrong by committing their crime, whether is be larceny, assault, or even going as far as possession of a weapon or drugs. What is lacking while they are in confinement, however, is the actual education. Some youths being taught are still growing and need basic education.
The text implies that, “Jails do not have the capacity to provide necessary education and programs crucial for the healthy development of adolescents. ” (“Placing Juveniles in the Adult Criminal Justice System is Counterproductive”). It is scientifically proven that most jails do not provide the proper training for the youth and most times it will affect their future. While youths are doing their jail time they should be able to get the necessary education so when they are released they may be able to improve their standing and not pick up where they left off.
The literature states, “Physicians and criminologists agree that children who are prosecuted in adult court are more likely to be rearrested more often and more quickly for serious offenses. ” (“Placing Juveniles in the Adult Criminal Justice System is Counterproductive”). Thus, it would be in the best interest of society to train or educate the offender on what they are doing wrong or let them prove through their actions that they want to change or make a difference in themselves for the people around them.
Education is a good part of the youth’s future, and with no such path to follow they could very well fall into the life of a habitual criminal, which simply perpetuates the problem that the system is trying so hard to fix. The juvenile detention system is broken due to the many conflicts that are associated with the system itself. There are many faults to the system that still to this day have not been put to the test. One major issue is, “Teenagers getting selectively punished for doing things that all teenagers do.
But what about kids who have done something really serious? ” (Mayeux). For example, a homicide as compared to a carjacking. You would not want to punish a killer in the same manner as a thief; however, often times the crime is usually linked to the child’s past and the difference is somewhat blurred. This sometimes results from suffering a traumatizing event when they were growing up and sometimes the result of things learned in jail that are verbally corrosive to the minds of these children that are so easily manipulated.
You see, as a teenager, you are probably at the point where being influenced by what people expect of you is very easily done. One text states, “They learn that, as one kid put it to me, ‘Your skin is your sin! Your criminality resides in who you are, before you even do anything, and what you do is secondary. They are being told that who you are – being poor, being black, being male, whatever combination of those things it is – makes you, if not a criminal, a suspect. ” (Mayeux, 4).
Now if children are being told that no matter who they are and what heir profile is they will always be observed in a certain light, as perhaps a criminal even before engaging upon such behavior,then nobody would have any idea of what the desirable action should be. This is a broken system because the child’s head is then filled with their negative stereotypes, affecting them emotionally, scarring them mentally, and leading to believe this predetermined destiny is inevitable. This is another problem with the system and why is does not live up to the desired expectation.
While most people believe that the juvenile detention system should be abolished, many other people believe that it is an effective way of reducing the crime in the world and that it provides endless amounts of results that helps youths get back on track in their lives. “Rather, these laws strike a proper balance between protecting public safety, holding youth appropriately accountable for their crimes and rehabilitating youthful offenders. ” (Backstrom, 1). While most believe that taking youth off the streets to keep the public safe is very effective, keeping the actual youth safe is another matter altogether.
As the text states, “Children who spend time in adult prisons and jails are at a much higher risk for assault, abuse and suicide. They don’t get the services they need, and they are more likely to re-offend sooner, more often, and more violently, than youth who stay in the juvenile system. ” (Rozzell). So as has been discussed, putting youths in these adult jails would seem to cause more harm to the individual, both mentally and/or physically, and could potentially lead to harm of other people, thus providing evidence that the system is failing and in need of significant reform.
In conclusion, juvenile detention is a necessity in any society for the safety of its citizens and the rehabilitation of the offender, but it’s clear that the goal of such a system should always be with a view of integrating the juvenile back into mainstream population as a productive, law-abiding adult. At its present state our system is failing, drastic reform is necessary, and the manner of accomplishing the goals can and will be debated ad infinitum.
