NCJ Number
58157
Date Published
1978
Length
262 pages
Annotation
THIS FINAL REPORT ON POLICE JUVENILE UNITS IS THE RESULT OF A 1-YEAR STUDY SUPPORTED BY THE NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF LAW ENFORCEMENT AND CRIMINAL JUSTICE.
Abstract
FIVE OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY WERE TO: (1) SUMMARIZE THE STATE OF KNOWLEDGE ON POLICE JUVENILE UNITS; (2) CONSTRUCT A FRAMEWORK FOR UNDERSTANDING POLICE JUVENILE UNITS THAT CAN AID IN EVALUATION; (3) CONDUCT PRELIMINARY RESEARCH RELATED TO SIGNIFICANT POLICY ISSUES IN POLICE JUVENILE UNITS; (4) INDICATE WHAT QUESTIONS AND ISSUES MERIT FURTHER STUDY AT LOCAL AND NATIONAL LEVELS; AND (5) PROVIDE DESIGNS WHERE APPROPRIATE FOR THE EVALUATION OF MAJOR ISSUES. SEVERAL DATA COLLECTION ACTIVITIES WERE UNDERTAKEN TO ACHIEVE THESE OBJECTIVES, INCLUDING A REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE, A MAIL SURVEY OF MIDDLE-SIZE AND LARGE-SIZE POLICE DEPARTMENTS, A TELEPHONE SURVEY OF A SAMPLE OF MAIL SURVEY RESPONDENTS, FIELD VISITS TO POLICE DEPARTMENTS WITH AND WITHOUT JUVENILE UNITS, AND PRELIMINARY RESEARCH ON A SELECTED NUMBER OF ISSUES IN SEVERAL POLICE DEPARTMENTS. OF 165 QUESTIONNAIRES DISTRIBUTED BY MAIL, 137 REPLIES WERE RECEIVED THAT PROVIDED INFORMATION ON POLICE DEPARTMENT CHARACTERISTICS, ORGANIZATION OF THE JUVENILE UNIT, NATURE OF OFFENSES HANDLED, DEPARTMENTAL STATUS OF JUVENILE OFFICERS, TRAINING OF JUVENILE OFFICERS, JUVENILE UNIT OPERATIONS AND ACTIVITIES, JUVENILE UNIT JURISDICTION, PROCESSING OF ALLEGED DELINQUENTS, REPORTS AND FILES USED, AND PRIOR EVALUATION OF JUVENILE UNITS. THE TELEPHONE SURVEY INVOLVED 30 POLICE DEPARTMENTS. TWELVE POLICE DEPARTMENTS WERE SELECTED FOR FIELD VISITS. INVESTIGATIVE, SCREENING, AND PROGRAM OPERATION FUNCTIONS OF POLICE JUVENILE UNITS WERE EXPLORED. THE ORGANIZATION OF POLICE DEPARTMENTS TO HANDLE JUVENILES WAS A LOCAL MATTER. IMPORTANT ISSUES IN POLICING JUVENILES DEALT WITH THE PRODUCTIVITY OF INVESTIGATIONS, UNIFORMITY OF SCREENING, AND EFFECTIVENESS OF DELINQUENCY PREVENTION PROGRAMS. THE REALITY OF POLICE JUVENILE UNIT OPERATIONS WAS THAT MANY UNITS HAD TO COMPETE FOR CASES WITH OTHER DEPARTMENTAL DIVISIONS. LEGISLATIVE TRENDS LIMITED THE JURISDICTION OF POLICE JUVENILE UNITS, AND THE ACHIEVEMENT OF UNIT GOALS WAS DEPENDENT ON OTHER COMPONENTS OF THE JUVENILE JUSTICE SYSTEM RATHER THAN ON INTERNAL POLICE DEPARTMENT CHANGES. MONITORING OF POLICE JUVENILE UNIT ACTIVITIES AND OUTCOMES IS DISCUSSED. DIRECTIONS FOR FURTHER RESEARCH ON A NATIONAL SCALE ARE SUGGESTED. TABLES AND FIGURES ARE INCLUDED. STUDY INSTRUMENTS AND INFORMATION ON STUDY PROCEDURES ARE APPENDED.