Juvenile Justice In America Essay
For this particular assignment, the history of juvenile justice in America will be discussed and how parens patriae, the child saver movement, and the JJDPA were all instrumental in shaping it.
Juvenile justice was formed in response to juvenile delinquency. Juveniles were treated the same as adults before the juvenile justice system existed. According to the Criminal Justice Reference Service (1999) during the 18th century, children as young as seven could be sentenced to prison or death for crimes. This atrocity continued throughout the centuries because children were not deemed as a group with special needs and behaviors. Finally, England played a pivotal role in giving voice to the American juvenile justice system. The voice, was given …show more content…
These were individuals that shared a common philosophy, to rehabilitate juveniles, instead of the use of punishment and confinement. They began to study the juvenile court system to learn ways to keep children from entering into it, and to handle cases in a less retributive way (Tanenhaus, 2004). Their way of thinking, strong commitment, and philosophy helped to create and shape todays American juvenile justice system.
The last piece of the puzzle, in the history of the American Juvenile Justice System is (JJDPA), Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act. According to the Coalition for Juvenile Justice (n.d.), the JJDPA was established in 1974 and went into effect in 2002. The premise of this act was children, youth, and families involved in court should be provided federal safeguards such as standards of care and custody. These safeguards had four core requirements: deinstitutionalization of status offenders, adult jail and lock-up removal, sight and sound separation, and disproportionate minority contact to make it an effective act.
In conclusion the history of the juvenile justice system is still writing and rewriting chapters in the history books. Revising different pieces of legislation so that the current history of the juvenile justice system will be known as a system that works for the juvenile and not against
Juvenile justice was formed in response to juvenile delinquency. Juveniles were treated the same as adults before the juvenile justice system existed. According to the Criminal Justice Reference Service (1999) during the 18th century, children as young as seven could be sentenced to prison or death for crimes. This atrocity continued throughout the centuries because children were not deemed as a group with special needs and behaviors. Finally, England played a pivotal role in giving voice to the American juvenile justice system. The voice, was given …show more content…
These were individuals that shared a common philosophy, to rehabilitate juveniles, instead of the use of punishment and confinement. They began to study the juvenile court system to learn ways to keep children from entering into it, and to handle cases in a less retributive way (Tanenhaus, 2004). Their way of thinking, strong commitment, and philosophy helped to create and shape todays American juvenile justice system.
The last piece of the puzzle, in the history of the American Juvenile Justice System is (JJDPA), Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act. According to the Coalition for Juvenile Justice (n.d.), the JJDPA was established in 1974 and went into effect in 2002. The premise of this act was children, youth, and families involved in court should be provided federal safeguards such as standards of care and custody. These safeguards had four core requirements: deinstitutionalization of status offenders, adult jail and lock-up removal, sight and sound separation, and disproportionate minority contact to make it an effective act.
In conclusion the history of the juvenile justice system is still writing and rewriting chapters in the history books. Revising different pieces of legislation so that the current history of the juvenile justice system will be known as a system that works for the juvenile and not against