NCJ Number
163652
Journal
Juvenile Justice Update Volume: 2 Issue: 4 Dated: (August/September 1996) Pages: 1,13-15
Date Published
1996
Length
4 pages
Annotation
Various legislative initiatives were proposed by Congress and President Clinton in 1996 in response to concern over juvenile crime.
Abstract
The Violent and Repeat Juvenile Offender Reform Act, introduced in the U.S. Senate in 1996, would eliminate the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) and replace it with an Office of Juvenile Accountability under the Bureau of Justice Assistance. Authorization for the new office would be $500 million for each of 5 years. States would receive funds in the form of a block grant but would be required to prosecute certain juveniles as adults in order to receive full funding. The act would lower the age for the death penalty for Federal crimes to 16 years and would add 35 new aggravating factors for courts to consider. The Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act of 1996 would authorize $160 million for the OJJDP but would restructure the office and rename it the Office of Youth Violence Reduction. The act would increase the Federal role in program evaluation and would emphasize research, evaluation, and accountability in the juvenile justice system. The Violent Youth Crime Act, introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives in 1996, would abolish the OJJDP and would replace it with the Office of Juvenile Crime Control. The act would require automatic adult prosecution for juveniles 14 years or older who commit serious violent crimes or major drug trafficking offenses, ease restrictions on where juvenile offenders can be confined before and after conviction, and impose more punishment and longer confinement periods for juveniles adjudicated delinquent. The Office of Juvenile Crime Control would be funded at $500 million for each of 5 years. Other proposed legislation proposed includes the Balanced Juvenile Justice and Crime Prevention Act of 1996 and the Anti-Gang and Youth Violence Act announced by President Clinton. The overall goal of the proposed laws is to focus on and reduce juvenile crime.