III. Treating Juveniles as Adults: Pros and Cons
B. Response to a Defective Justice System
Crime committed in America by people under eighteen years of age is increasing at an alarming rate. Further, the level of violent crimes, where assault and/or murder is involved is increasing. As a result, many in law enforcement are demanding revisions in the way juveniles are punished and that they, in fact, be treated as adults. This means that a young person could face the death penalty for crimes such as murder. The purpose of this paper will be to discuss juvenile criminals and the justice system with a review of the pros and cons surrounding this new approach to juvenile punishment.
The FBI crime count for 1986 - which showed an unexpected twelve percent rise in violent-crime reports nationwide - said that nearly one in ten accused murderers are under the age of eighteen (Gest, 1987, p. 50). What was particularly surprising about these figures was that experts had predicted a decrease in the juvenile crime rate due to the shrinking youth population. Instead, it has remained high. In Detroit alone, forty-three youths were killed and 365 wounded by gunfire in 1986 (p. 50).
While young males are responsible for most of the crime, only a small number of them, around six percent, are actually responsible for most of the violent crime committed by juveniles (Kramer, 1988, p. 13). Further, those who commit these types of crimes do so frequently. "Many delinquent boys report having committed about ten serious crimes for every one for which they were arrested" (p. 13).
Youngsters who commit criminal acts show a versatility of involvement in illegal behavior. They are not necessarily violent or nonviolent criminals. Rather, it is the frequency and seriousness of their involvement in various kinds of criminal behavior that are the best indicators of future serious criminal activity. In addition, those who commit violen...