NCJ Number
187282
Journal
Juvenile Justice Update Volume: 6 Issue: 4 Dated: August/September 2000 Pages: 3-11-13
Date Published
August 2000
Length
4 pages
Annotation
This article examines offenses, risk factors, and interventions with regard to serious and violent juveniles.
Abstract
The Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention created a Study Group to investigate serious and violent juvenile (SVJ) offenders. From the group's findings, the article discusses the following: (1) offense rate data showed a drop in serious violent offenses; (2) superpredator prediction was disproved with longitudinal studies; (3) incorrigibility should perhaps be relabeled as domestic violence; and (4) SVJ offenders start offending earlier and continue offending longer than non-SVJ offenders and demonstrate behavioral problems at an earlier age. Risk factors for becoming an SVJ offender include lack of prenatal care, being male, maternal depression, attention problems, lack of guilt, lack of empathy, stealing, precocious sex and substance use, truancy and poverty. From mid-adolescence onward, gang membership, gun possession, and unemployment place youth at greater risk. The article reviews promising intervention strategies by families, schools, and communities. Finally, the Study Group calls for more focus on "what works for whom" and under what circumstances and less focus on just "what works." References