INTRODUCTION In forty-eight states a child of seventeen has the opportunity for their misdemeanor to go to a juvenile court, them to be reprimanded, and then their file sealed so as to give them the chance to succeed in life. This honors the idea that young adults are not, in fact, adults. From brain chemistry to peer pressure, adolescents have several vulnerabilities unique to their age. In New York and North Carolina, however, they are automatically tried as an adult at the age of sixteen (Raise 2015) -- with no consideration of the severity of their crime, little consideration to their physical and emotional vulnerabilities, and no thought to the damage that such a criminalization causes. In New York, the Juvenile Offender Act of 1978 followed
…show more content…
At the same time the criminalization of adolescents was becoming harsher with more punitive movements being pushed in several branches of the juvenile justice system. Correctional facilities lost their focus on rehabilitative practices and as New York began trying more juveniles as adults the juvenile facilities were reduced in both size and funding. The 1979 DJJ attempted to mitigate this system and establish smaller facilities, where a focus on education, health care, and after care was stronger. However, this was never funded appropriately (Canon 2010). During the time period that marked the “war on drugs”, the United States saw an increase in arrests and incarceration across the board. Youth were not exempt from this. As we entered the 1990’s we also had the establishment of the idea that the youth of that generation were “superpredators” in comparison to the youth in past generations. (///) This is to say that they were more violent and more willing to commit violent acts. This was eventually discredited but the system was impacted by becoming more punitive in that time (Canon …show more content…
In most states there are still means for converting a case to an adult court, but that discretion takes into context of the crime. European countries also take this perspective. In most countries there are provisions for trying young adults up to the age of twenty-one as juveniles, because they recognize the young adult’s neuro-biology and status as youth (Jehle, 2008). However, New York does not currently follow this process.
In a nation that has made imprisonment a business; we are risking our youth, allowing them to get caught in this system. However, we have to understand how much we the current system and the proposed changes related in a cost-benefit analysis. In 2010, Illinois enacted an amendment to the Juvenile Court Act of 1987 that increased the age of adult responsibility to eighteen (Son, 2014).
The first part of this paper will explore the history and the literature that exists on the subject. As New York still follows a system that tries children as young as sixteen, it would also be beneficial to compare the cost and benefits that Illinois experienced with its policy change to the current costs and benefits of New York’s structure. Thus the latter part of the paper will be an analysis of these costs and benefits.
HISTORY AND
At the same time the criminalization of adolescents was becoming harsher with more punitive movements being pushed in several branches of the juvenile justice system. Correctional facilities lost their focus on rehabilitative practices and as New York began trying more juveniles as adults the juvenile facilities were reduced in both size and funding. The 1979 DJJ attempted to mitigate this system and establish smaller facilities, where a focus on education, health care, and after care was stronger. However, this was never funded appropriately (Canon 2010). During the time period that marked the “war on drugs”, the United States saw an increase in arrests and incarceration across the board. Youth were not exempt from this. As we entered the 1990’s we also had the establishment of the idea that the youth of that generation were “superpredators” in comparison to the youth in past generations. (///) This is to say that they were more violent and more willing to commit violent acts. This was eventually discredited but the system was impacted by becoming more punitive in that time (Canon …show more content…
In most states there are still means for converting a case to an adult court, but that discretion takes into context of the crime. European countries also take this perspective. In most countries there are provisions for trying young adults up to the age of twenty-one as juveniles, because they recognize the young adult’s neuro-biology and status as youth (Jehle, 2008). However, New York does not currently follow this process.
In a nation that has made imprisonment a business; we are risking our youth, allowing them to get caught in this system. However, we have to understand how much we the current system and the proposed changes related in a cost-benefit analysis. In 2010, Illinois enacted an amendment to the Juvenile Court Act of 1987 that increased the age of adult responsibility to eighteen (Son, 2014).
The first part of this paper will explore the history and the literature that exists on the subject. As New York still follows a system that tries children as young as sixteen, it would also be beneficial to compare the cost and benefits that Illinois experienced with its policy change to the current costs and benefits of New York’s structure. Thus the latter part of the paper will be an analysis of these costs and benefits.
HISTORY AND