NCJ Number
100610
Journal
Journal of Criminal Law and Criminology Volume: 74 Issue: 4 Dated: (Winter 1984) Pages: 1246-1275
Date Published
1984
Length
30 pages
Annotation
Self-reported delinquency and court data were collected for 687 first-time status offenders at time of court referral and at 6-month and 12-month (for participants in a diversion program) followup to investigate offense specialization and escalation.
Abstract
While court data indicate the existence of a specialized category of status offenders, self-reports indicate that almost all had engaged in additional delinquent activities. For most, however, status offenses accounted for the larger proportion of their offense behavior. Further, few of these youth were referred to court for subsequent offenses. Recidivism rates were lowest for white females and highest for black males. There also was no official or self-report evidence that offense careers followed an escalating pattern. Finally, status offenders who were most likely to desist were also least likely to receive services, and neither official records nor self-report data indicate lower recidivism among deinstitutionalization/diversion participants relative to those who were merely released after court intake. 63 Footnotes.