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Introduction to Juvenile Justification System and Justice System

Thesis: Juvenile crime is a major issue in society, and crime prevention programs have to

ensure that these offenders are reintegrated back into the society once they face the justice

system. In many scenarios, any individual accused of a crime and is under the age of 18 is

considered as a juvenile. In many states, there are specific limitations for juvenile offenders.

Essentially, these are individuals between 10 to 18 years, while other states limit the age to 16-17

years old. The juvenile courts are responsible for deciding if the defendant should be charged for

a particular crime. Furthermore, it determines the results of the heinous crime. The juvenile can

also be referred to an adult court if their conviction requires such a court (Fennelly, 2012).

Indeed, juveniles are a unique aspect of the population who commit crime, and it can be very

difficult to deal with cases involving such individuals.

The criminal justice system us defined as practices and structures by the government that

seek to deter and mitigate crime. It is also involved in implementing societal control mechanisms

and determining the individuals who commit a crime and the penalties and rehabilitations efforts

necessary to change them. Essentially, the justice system is within a context of entre variants that

seek to stop or prevent criminal behaviour among the populations (Lab, 2016). This is an

essential in the community and society as it acts as a mechanism to ensure the peaceful
coexistence of individuals. It details ways to deal with a crime and to maintain the eminence of

life.

Summary of Jurisdiction and Portion of criminal Justice System

For many years, a large number of individuals and states have believed that the juvenile

system acts as a way to defend the population by providing a system that responds to the needs

who are becoming adults or are maturing. Many states in America have determined that the

crimes committed by children cannot be equated to those committed by adults. This means that

children will require a different response or mode of assistance to ensure that they do not engage

in crime again. Additionally, adults have more opportunities and capacities to commit a crime in

comparison to children. As a means to deal with juvenile crime, many states have come up with

a youth-centric, disparate service delivery mechanism that differs from the structures sued

among adults (Schneider, 2014). The juvenile structure and the criminal justice system allow

police to arrest any individual who engages in any crime. They case can then be charged on

them, and they will be expected to face legal consequences that arise from a crime. The

individual will then be taken through a hearing of their cases and the court can then make a

resolution based on evidence and disputes by lawyers. The court has the power to punish and

penalize any individual who acts in an unlawful manner or in criminal activities as based on the

punishments and penalties that have been decided by the courts (Mays & Ruddell, 2012).

Occurrences of the crimes comprise:

Rape either as an individual or as a gang

Mistreating men, women and children

Domestic violence
 Burglary and theft

Terrorism and interacting with terrorists knowingly

Murder

Physical abuse leading to injury

Sexual violent activities either at work or home

Crimes committed by children while at school such as murder and sexual abuse

Many activities and instances can be regard as crime. The justice system is formulated to deal

with any crime to ensure that the community and citizenry will live in peace. It also seeks to

prevent violence. Moreover, the juvenile system provides an effective means to deal with crimes

committed by young individuals (Crowe & Fennelly, 2013).

Current trend analysis

The current history of the US criminal justice system is characterised with progress that

has traditionally relied on yardsticks. This means that the changes occurred in a constant manner,

and were based on previous advantages of the efforts put in place. For the past 2 decades, the

changes that have occurred in the justice system were in form of balanced and restorative justice,

movement in support of the rights of the victims, community policing, community based trials,

speciality courts (to deal with issues such as drugs, mental illness, and re-entry), and an increase

in focus towards issues of violence affecting women. The courts are dealing with wide ranges of

cases that are within the states issues above. Moreover, the US is characterised with a high rate

of violence, and the justice system is fully engaged in dealing with tis societal issue. The SARA

model (Scanning, Analysis, Response and Assessment) is effective in analysing three cities.
These are Chicago, Florida and New York. The Crime Analysis Triangle is also used to

understand the trends in crime among the youths (Clarke & Eck, 2003).

Success in dealing with violent crime is realised though a reduction in the levels and

prevalence of such crimes. Uniform Crime reporting (UCR), an FBI agency dealing with

investigations, provided data on the violent crime rates in 2002. In Chicago and New York, the

rates were considered as 29% lower in comparison to 1994. This is similar to the national data

of 25%. Additionally, the homicide rate is much lower in comparison to the 1960s. Indeed, the

society has made many progresses when it comes to dealing with violent crimes and criminal

behaviour. In 1980s, the homicide ratio per 100,000 individuals was at 10.1 nationally, 15 in

Chicago, 13 I New York and 11 in Florida. This level has been on the decrease, it is about 5.4 in

the 1990s and 2000. In 1993, the ratio for each 100,000 females who encountered forceful rape

was much higher, and it reduced by 21% by 2002 to 60 nationally, 58 in Chicago and 60 in

Florida and New York. Many changes have occurred to deal with property crimes. Larger steps

were additionally taken to diminish crime as regards to property. As per the details provided

through FBI UCR, there exist 10,450,325 crimes as regards to property in U.S. in year 2002,

losing 400,000 from year 1983, when there exist just 55 million fewer populace (Schneider,

2014). This was about

Great strides were also made in reducing property crime. According to FBI UCR data, the

US witnessed 10,000,000 in 2002. This was much lower in comparison to the 1984 where

property crimes were at 11million. Even though experts have different perspectives about the

progress in reducing property crimes, this changes are attributed to the financial systems. Other

reasons include a stability of drug marketplaces, restructuring of the social policy and decrease in

joblessness (Lab, 2016).

Crime Prevention Strategy

There are several crime prevention strategies that can be applied in the current context.

Law enforcement

Law enforcement is defined as the structure from which a few individuals in the

community follow actions in a legal manner to limit acts by deterring, rehabilitating, discovering

and providing discipline for people who do not follow the law, policies and norms. Essentially, it

acts as a means to regulate the community and maintain peace (Lab, 2016).

The civil liberties held by humans can be analysed and researched based on the criminal

justice system. Essentially, the rights held by humans are a major issue of concern. This includes

issues such as privacy, quality of every person, sexual cruelty, security, tax avoidance practices,

ill-treatment and abuses. Individuals are treated differently due to their cultural differences and

beliefs such as indigenous individuals are viewed differently in comparison to others. Privacy is

also an important issue for many people. The privacy of an individual is often limited when their

personal information s accessed without permission and used to do harm. In many cases, private

information is often not protected, and this entices criminals to use the information. A case to

consider is criminals who steal an individuals bank account information, and they use this

access to make unwarranted purchases. Cybercrime has been on the rise, especially in emails and

social media. Criminals through a variety of means dupe many people (Mays & Ruddell, 2012).

A large number of the perpetrators are often juveniles as they have more knowledge on

technological trends and have sufficient skills.

Barriers
 A major issue that limits the development of human rights in the need for the population

to be aware about the laws or privileges supported by laws. Indeed, the lack of information is a

major barrier. Many individuals in a country are unaware about their rights and responsibilities

as established by law. This would mean that they are not aware when an unlawful practice or

event occurs. Additionally, there are some cases where people do not fight for their rights in the

society due to their economic position. This is often the case where wealthy individuals force

poor people to commit unlawful acts (Fennelly, 2012). Young individuals often engage in crime

due to financial issues, or lack of knowledge or education or even poverty. These are common

issues in the society, and often lead to criminal behaviour.

Use of Laws in crime prevention

The term law details the dissimilar things that occur in different times. The law is a

structure of rules that guide actions and behaviour in the society. They are standard, and apply to

everyone within a particular society under a particular jurisdiction. It is characterised with a

mandatory lawful power and controls privilege. This means that the laws guide everyone in the

society. It is essential to maintain peace and justice in the society (Clarke & Eck, 2003).

Crime Prevention programs

Suppression is an effective crime prevention program. This program is a universal choice

for law enforcement and the justice system to deal with juvenile crime. Suppression entails

activities by the police to prevent criminal behaviour and activities. This is often intended for

juveniles, especially those engaged in gangs and are in possession of dangerous weapons such as

those in Chicago and New York (Mays & Ruddell, 2012).

 The suppression approach entails killing or arresting juveniles who commit crimes to

prevent or finish their continuation of criminal activity in the public. The police also have the

authority to abolish and stop the criminals or crime. The police are also responsible for efforts

that lead to identification and arrest of the criminals. The police can also withhold certain

information from the public for security purposes. This can often be the case when the police are

after a juvenile suspect in the society. Considering their age, it is often difficult to arrest such as

individual as many of them do not have identification cards (Crowe & Fennelly, 2013).

However, the police have the power to arrest anyone engaged in crime despite their age.

The police are also expected to respond to a crime in a professional manner. This means

that the criminal is provided with an occupation or education to prevent the recurrence of a

crime. This is the case where the criminal was forced to steal or commit burglary because they

have no money for food. In this case, the police should establish or utilize appropriate

institutions to assist such an individual (Schneider, 2014). This strategy is applicable in a three

jurisdictions of New York, Chicago and Florida. It will minimise criminal activities in the

The opportunities provision strategy is also a means to minimise criminal activities

among juveniles. This is based on the need to provide youths with opportunities and positions

that will ensure that avoid criminal behaviour. A large number of youths commit crime during

holidays when they are not in school. Essentially, if they are given an opportunity to practice

helpful skills such ass through summer camps, they will avoid criminal activity. Other activities

that are among the opportunity provision program include job-training, education tutoring such

as hackathons and job placement. This is most effective in states such as New York and Chicago

with a large number of youths who can be engaged in criminal behaviours. Indeed, this strategy

will ensue that they are engaged in helpful activities in the society (Crowe & Fennelly, 2013).
The American government has promoted the strategy, and through this, it will be effective in

preventing crime within the locales.

Gang Resistance Education and Training (GREAT) is also a crime prevention strategy. It

relies on the use of instruction as a means of dealing with crime. This entails a curriculum that is

intended for schools. It allows children to learn about the justice system, crime, offences, and

advantages of avoiding criminal behaviour. It is an effective technique that is applicable in the

case of Chicago where crimes, gun violence and murder are common. Essentially, GREAT

seeks to educate the youth on the dangers of criminal behaviour so that they avoid crime. It also

allows them to understand the consequences of committing a crime and the crime prevention

programs in place (Clarke & Eck, 2003).

A recommendation of a funding strategy for program implementation

The program that entails supporting the juvenile justice system will involve funding from

well-established juvenile organizations and agencies. This can involve children support

organizations, social work groups and NGOs that seek to protect the right of children. Moreover,

the population can also play a role in funding the program. This will ensure that the program

will be effective in training and educating the youth about the justice system and crimes

(Fennelly, 2012). The funds can be used in supporting schools to educate the young, and creating

programs to support juvenile offenders.

Anticipated outcomes

The crime prevention program seeks to deal with juvenile crimes in the community.

Essentially, it will act as a deterrence mechanism to prevent crimes, and provides a means of

ensuring that criminals undergo through effective systems that will reintegrate them back to the
society and prevents more activities that are criminal (Fennelly, 2012). The long-term outcomes

involve a reduction in crime while the short-term outcome involves ensuring that victims of

crimes get justice.

Conclusion

Juvenile crime is a major issue in society, and crime prevention programs have to ensure

that these offenders are reintegrated back into the society once they face the justice system.

Currently, the justice system and the police are looking into the best ways of engaging with the

youth and reducing juvenile offences. There are many variables that can lead to crime such as

poverty, personal issues among others. Programs such as educating communities but crimes and

GREAT will prove beneficial in reducing rates of crime in the society among juveniles.

References

Clarke, R. V., & Eck, J. E. (2003). Crime Analysis for Problem Solvers in 60 Small Steps.

Crowe, T. D., & Fennelly, L. J. (2013). Crime prevention through environmental design. Amsterdam:
Elsevier.

Fennelly, L. J. (2012). Handbook of loss prevention and crime prevention. Waltham, Mass.: Elsevier.

Lab, S. P. (2016). Crime Prevention: Approaches, Practices, and Evaluations. New York: Routledge.

Mays, L., & Ruddell, R. (2012). Do the crime, do the time : juvenile criminals and adult justice in the
American court system. Santa Barbara, Calif.: Praeger.

Schneider, S. (2014). Crime Prevention: Theory and Practice, Second Edition. Boca Raton, FL: CRC Press.