Movements Shaping the Treatment of Juvenile Offenders

Juvenile delinquency has been established to be the cause of increased crime rates and lawlessness in the society. Hence, there is the requirement to put into practice measures that will help curb the increasing number of juvenile delinquents. With the proper guidance and mentorship, these children stand a chance of becoming normal citizens. Tendencies of misconduct in children should be addressed early because majority of the cases of juvenile delinquencies are mostly predisposed by the environment that the child was raised. To reduce crime rate in the society, crime has to be addressed at its grassroots. This means that measures have to be implemented to curb cases of juvenile delinquents and establishment of facilities responsible for the rehabilitation of juvenile offenders. Hence, movements have been implemented that have helped shape the way juvenile offenders are treated (Mc Ford & Spatz, 2011).

The police are responsible for the maintenance of law and order in the society. They are responsible for the prevention of crime and respond in time, to assist citizens in distress. The police rarely deal with cases of juvenile delinquents as opposed to adult cases of lawlessness. Proposals to set up agencies that handle cases of juvenile delinquents should be enacted. The police handling these cases of juvenile offenders should be highly trained on how to handle and deal with minors. As a result, this will come off as an improvement on the part of the police administration as it will be in a position to address cases of juvenile offenders, which are highly prevalent in the society. These specialized officers should at all times incorporate information, which enables them to handle child welfare cases intelligently, thus they are able to depict special cases requiring specialized attention. These special agencies under the police administration should be properly distributed meet all the children in the society. Hence, the cooperation of these special agencies with schools will aid in the prevention of juvenile cases, as the police officers will work together with heads of schools and student leaders in the race to curb crime among children in the society (Siegel & Brandon, 2008).

The establishment of juvenile courts has influenced the treatment of juvenile offenders. Juvenile courts are responsible for handling and treating cases of delinquency among children in the society. These courts have the sole responsibility of delivering justice and mostly coming up with solutions, which will help in reforming these delinquents. The courts main concern is having an understanding as to why a child is delinquent. On having a clear understanding after thorough scrutiny of a child’s case of delinquency, the courts recommend treatment that will cause the child to lead a positive live in the foreseeable future. These courts are observed to treat minor delinquencies with sympathy, as the courts interests are to guide the child. Offences that are of a serious nature are treated with severity having little regard to their causes. Hence, juvenile courts are a necessity in every community to handle cases related to minors (Boesky, 2002).

Institutions that handle delinquent cases also shape the treatment of juvenile offenders. Much effort has been put handle cases of delinquency in our community. This is through the establishment of these correctional facilities that help handle juvenile offenders. Adjustment of these delinquents is achieved through social work in public places, probation, and other forms of social work in the community. These agencies and institutions function in such a way that they send the severe juvenile cases to correctional facilities and foster homes whereas the mild cases are set to perform social and community work. These correctional institutions have the grave responsibility of procuring competent and highly qualified probation officers. These officers are entrusted with the responsibility of educating and guiding parents and treating the children. Cases arise whereby children need security, which is not provided in their own homes due to cases of child harassment and molestation. Their only hope is in these institutions. Hence, correctional facilities are a requirement in community (Siegel & Brandon, 2008).

Because of these movements and legislations, the prevention of juvenile delinquency has become advent in the community. This has been made possible through education of the public. Creating public awareness on the issues concerning juvenile delinquents will reduce the number of juvenile offenders significantly. Since the public is well informed, juvenile offenders will be sent to juvenile courts whereby experts qualified in handling children’s cases will handle the matter (Boesky, 2002).

When juvenile crimes arise, the specialized police qualified to handle minors will be in reach and will assist in distressful situations. These police are in a position to determine cases requiring special attention and refer the children to child specialists.

In conclusion, educating parents on how to handle and curd manifestations of delinquent behavior in the early stages of childhood is advised. Correctional facilities and institutions have experts with a good understanding of children’s behavior. These experts can give the parents a good insight on how to handle and instill disciplines among delinquent children. Juvenile offenders are present in our society and hence there is the need to control the increase of these offenders in the society. These offenders are the major causes of the growth in crime rate our society, hence the need to adjust these delinquents early in life.

References

Boesky, L.M. (2002). Juvenile Offenders with Mental Health Disorders: who are they and

What do we do with them? Washington: American Correctional Association.

Mc Ford, J & Spatz, C. (2011). Juvenile Crimes. New York: National Institute of Justice.

Siegel, L.J. & Brandon, C. W. (2008). Juvenile Delinquency: The Core. New York:

Thomson Wadsworth.