NCJ Number
135963
Date Published
1992
Length
18 pages
Annotation
The juvenile justice system continues to experience uncertainty regarding how to address the competing visions of its goals; in the future it should try to accommodate concerns about accountability with concern about contributing to juveniles' growth into healthy and productive adults.
Abstract
Many states have modified their juvenile codes since the 1970's to respond to arguments that the system and the parens patriae doctrine are ineffective. Concern also currently exists regarding how to deal more effectively with violent and chronic juvenile offenders. In recent years, policymakers have developed a bifurcated approach, viewing juvenile justice clients either as children to be helped and protected or offenders to be punished and from whom the community must be protected. The responses that this situation has generated have had a negative impact on the juvenile justice system, with incarceration increasing despite a somewhat stable level of serious juvenile crime. Therefore, a more integrated vision of juvenile crime and juvenile justice is needed to avoid inappropriate responses such as giving up on the rehabilitative goal and transferring youths to the adult system, incarcerating when another response will adequately hold a particular youth accountable while protecting the community, and permitting future growth. Footnotes and 51 references