While we do not have to read the newspaper or watch the news to see that juvenile crime has continued to rise drastically over the last several decades statistics such as Kupchik’s writing that between the years of 1993 to 1998 juvenile crime rose 366% is absolutely astonishing. What does one do with so many juveniles, how do you ensure that they learn and under what circumstances is it best for them to serve their sentences under? Is there a crime that rules out one’s age, or does our age constitute how we deserve to spend our time?
If a person commits premeditated murder we expected them to be punished to the full extent of the law; but in some states we do not see that being the same for all individuals, for those under the age of 18 many states still deem these young adults as people needing more help. “This distinction mirrors a modern conception of youthful offenders as less culpable for their misdeeds, and more amenable to and deserving of treatment than adults—a conception that was partially responsible for the creation of the juvenile court over a century ago (Rothman, 1980; Tanenhaus, 2004).” In the juvenile court system individuals are looked at on a case by case basis and evaluated on what can be done to help them not only serve out their punishment but also continue their education and advance later in life. In blatant terms if you kill someone under the age of 18 you have a chance of not only getting education, canceling, advancement options but if you are an adult you will have to find and fight for these resources on their own. “Prosecuting adolescents in criminal courts and punishing them as adults contradicts this notion of reduced culpability and greater amenability to treatment for youths relative to adults (Kupchik, 2006).”
With all of the different forms of juvenile treatment and imprisonment it seems confusing to truly understand what is best for the convict. Juvenile only facilities seem to offer more in terms of safety and education; they have been deemed more of a correctional type of school versus imprisonment. Kupchik accounted for many different variables in his writing on youth offenses: how they were prosecuted, where, their age, as well as following the many different variables that would be encountered such as sex and the state in which their crimes were committed. And what was found was pretty clear; that in juvenile incarceration that youth offenders are not only given better opportunity to learn from their crimes, to educate themselves, but to also have better interactions with other based on the people that they will be dealing with. In most average juvenile facilities the count is one officer to every 2 inmates versus the 1 officer to 100 inmates in the adult facilities. Juveniles will interact more with teachers, staff, and positive reinforcement then they would if they were incarcerated in adult prison.
Another option besides juvenile or adult facilities that are given to some youthful offenders that I feel is a good idea, and beneficial to those that have committed maybe less offensive crimes is third party groups such as “Last Chance Ranch” that offer alternatives to jail with strict guidelines, expectations and rules. Youth are exposed to not only normal counseling and rehabilitation but also taken into outside world experiences where they learn how to work with their stress levels and problem solve under extreme conditions. What is unfortunate is that programs such as these are not always going to help everyone; and in some cases open the door for those that are only looking for a lighter ride to the outside where they can continue the lifestyle they had before.
While I have always prided myself in the Arizona justice system being fair and firm after reading Kupchik’s writing the justice system is such a complex web that it will truly be hard to fairly determine how to properly prosecute, classify and judge each case that comes before them. For every time that you find a correlation between crime, age, sex background, etc you can find a half dozen cases that will prove those findings wrong. In many cases reading and viewing how juveniles are classified and how they feel they are being treated within the system itself I have to give my hats off, because our system in trying to maintain justice and peace is sometimes easy to take advantage of and at other times is perfect for the young adult who wants to learn to correct and be an outstanding citizen.
Kupchik, A. (2007). The correctional experiences of youth in adult and juvenile prisons. Justice Quarterly, 24(2), 247-270
Steinberg, L., & Scott, E. S. (2003). Less guilty by reason of adolescence: Developmental immaturity, diminished responsibility, and the juvenile death penalty. The American Psychologist, 58(12), 1009-18
Films for the Humanities and Sciences."Part 1: Juveniles Locked Up" 1995. Online video clip. Arizona Universities Library Consortium. FMG Video On Demand. Accessed on 08 July 2010. http://digital.films.com/play/ HVKF9S
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