History Of Juvenile Delinquency

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Juvenile Delinquency is a term that refers to anti-social or criminal acts carried out by young children (“About…”). The average age for those who are classified as delinquent in the United States is 18. These delinquents often test the limits and boundaries set by their parents and other authority figures. Though rebellion and experimentation is common among adolescents, these children consistently participate in problematic behaviors that negatively affect their academic, social, and personal functioning (“About…”). These delinquents sometimes have mental disorders or behavioral issue. However, Juvenile delinquency is one of the most important issues in crime today.
Juvenile crimes are mentioned as far back as ancient Sumerian and Hammurabi (“About…”). In these areas, law concerning juvenile offenders first appeared in written forms. Throughout all time there has been delinquency. In Ancient Britain, children at the age of seven were tried, convicted, and punished as adults (“About…”). In the 1870’s, children were viewed as
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Most of these children were rounded up for the crime of being poor and not because they committed a crime. The poorhouses became known as reform schools. The schools were viewed as being harsh to those youths who were residents (“What is…”). As the schools became overcrowded, children were sent west as indentured servants (“What is…”). Some of them never were allowed to have contact with their parents again. Industrialization and urbanization played a huge role in the modern area of juvenile delinquency (“What is…”). Many of these factors are still relevant today. For example, many farms are going bankrupt and unemployment is steadily raised. Youth who have no money to live the way they want will often turn to crime as a way become satisfied (“What is…”). Throughout the years, the percent of juveniles involved in criminal issues have been constantly

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