Juvenile Justice System, The: Deliquency, Processing and the Law [Hardcover]

The Juvenile Justice System: Delinquency, Processing, and the Law (3rd ed.) is a complete examination of the juvenile justice system. It explores how juvenile offenders are defined and classified and draws on current literature to depict significant stages of juvenile processing.

The most recent juvenile cases are used to illustrate the legal bases for decisions about juveniles. Landmark Supreme Court cases are included, although persuasive decisions from various state courts are also presented to show juvenile justice trends. A legalistic perspective is followed, therefore, to highlight the different rights juveniles have acquired and how different components of the juvenile justice system relate to them. An integral feature of this book is the distinction between status offenses and delinquent offenses. This difference has significant consequences for all affected juveniles.

The history of juvenile courts is described, including crucial events that have influenced the course of juvenile justice. Increasingly, juveniles are extended rights commensurate with the rights of adults. An indication of this trend is the growing use of waivers (certifications or transfers) to criminal court. This option is intended to expose more serious juvenile offenders to more severe punishment forms compared with the possible punishments that juvenile judges may impose. The spreading use of waivers has not always achieved the intended result of more severe penalties for juveniles, however, since many juveniles who are waived to criminal courts receive minimal punishments if they are punished at all.

One explanation is that most juveniles who are transferred to criminal courts are not necessarily the most serious, dangerous, or violent juvenile offenders. A majority of those transferred continue to be property offenders, drug users, and public order and status offenders. Once juveniles are waived to the jurisdiction of criminal courts, their age becomes a mitigating factor. Quite often, this factor trivializes the seriousness of their offending and lessens the punishments imposed. Many cases against juveniles are dropped or reduced to less serious charges. Thus, many juveniles who are tried as adults receive sentences that are comparatively less severe than those that would otherwise be contemplated and imposed by juvenile judges. One potential penalty that receives increasing attention however, is the death penalty applied to juveniles. Current case law about imposing the death penalty as a punishment for juveniles is examined and several juvenile death penalty cases are described.

Juveniles are not only classified according to type of offense, but the35 are also tracked according to the nature of offenses committed across: years. Delinquency is defined and measured according to several popular indices, such as the Uniform Crime Reports and the National Crime Victimization Survey. No single resource discloses the true amount of delinquency in the United States.

The major components of the juvenile justice system are featured;; including law enforcement, prosecution and the courts, and corrections. Corrections is presented in a broad context, with each correctional component described. Correctional strategies ranging from diversion to full-fledged incarceration are featured, together with a discussion of the favorable and unfavorable dimensions of such programs. One interesting; feature is a section devoted to recidivism among juveniles, depending on the nature of the treatment program described. Thus, community-based correctional programs are assessed, together with probation and parole alternatives for managing a growing juvenile offender aggregate. Electronic; monitoring and home confinement are described as strategic and technological means of coping with growing numbers of juvenile offenders.

The book's features include a glossary, key terms at chapter ends, and review questions that highlight chapter contents. Introductions to chapters are vignettes that lead into subsequent material. At critical points throughout chapters, supplemental boxes describe events or incidents that complement different sections. Often these are news stories that use some of the key terms presented. A comprehensive reference section is also included. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

Writing a book is a labor of love for those who like to write. This process is enhanced with the enthusiastic support of the publisher and its representatives. I have been profoundly influenced over the years in this project and others by the different editors with whom I have worked at Prentice Hall. It is fitting to acknowledge their roles, past and present, for this work. The Juvenile Justice System: Delinquency, Processing, and the Law was originally signed and promoted by Chris Cardone, the Criminal Justice Editor at Macmillan Publishing Company. When Prentice Hall acquired Macmillan, my new editor was Robin Baliszewski, who continued supporting and encouraging my writing efforts in this and other projects. Then Neil Marquardt provided me with substantial assistance and guidance in this project. I extend a special thanks to Neil for working with me closely in formulating my book projects and amassing crucial feedback from competent reviewers who take seriously the task of reviewing texts and offering constructive criticisms. I look forward to continuing this kind of working relationship with the new editors, Kim Davies and Marion Gottlieb. The key person responsible for maintaining the production schedule and discovering typographical errors, missing references, or stylistic inconsistencies is the production editor. Naomi Sysak performed this chore on the second edition, while Linda Pawelchak was the head beancounter on the present edition. I cannot begin to count the number of telephone calls made between author and production editor during the nine months preceding a book's publication. Having reared three children, I can honestly say that awaiting the final book product is more anxiety-laden than a hospital waiting room.

Assisting in the delivery process are academicians who review the book manuscript. The best reviewers are the most critical reviewers, since any book is amenable to improvement. While not everyone agrees on how books should be organized and which materials should be included, the fact is that most books are influenced significantly by the useful input of academic peers. While I assume responsibility for errors of fact and the level and style of the book's prose, I am indebted to the following reviewers for their thoughtful analyses and criticisms of this edition: Jean Clouartre, New Hampshire Technical Institute; Bruce T. Smith, Ohio University; and Ed Whittle, Florida Metropolitan University.

Dean Champion