Juveniles Incarcerated With Adults Essay
Juveniles Incarcerated with Adults
Today I will be speaking about juveniles incarcerated with adults. Are adolescents really prepared to live in an environment with adults? 'They may be sentenced as adults but they're still adolescents.
The move to punish youthful offenders as adults came in response to a steep rise in the juvenile murder rate in the late 1980's and early 1990's. Teenage prisoners were increasingly seen to be as morally culpable and responsible as adults. Forty-five states passed or amended legislation to send not only violent young offenders, but also teenagers convicted of burglary and drug offenses, into the adult system.
Those who are ultimately incarcerated in adult jails are often the victims of violent assault and suicide, and are 34 percent more likely to be re-arrested than those retained in the juvenile system. Once juveniles have been arrested and accused of serious crimes, certain factors need to be considered:
- Juveniles age 15 and younger are significantly more likely than older adolescents and young adults to be impaired in ways that compromise their …show more content…
The most recent American study on juvenile suicide in adult institutions and youth facilities in different states found that the suicide rate of juveniles in adult jails was 7.7 times higher than that of juvenile detention centers. Five times as many youth held in adult prisons reported attempted sexual attacks. Surveys in other countries have found similarly higher rape rates for young offenders in adult institutions. Studies have also reported higher assault rates for juveniles in adult facilities. Such research findings are currently being ignored by Congress as it considers legislation that would have the effect of increasing the number of juveniles housed in adult
Today I will be speaking about juveniles incarcerated with adults. Are adolescents really prepared to live in an environment with adults? 'They may be sentenced as adults but they're still adolescents.
The move to punish youthful offenders as adults came in response to a steep rise in the juvenile murder rate in the late 1980's and early 1990's. Teenage prisoners were increasingly seen to be as morally culpable and responsible as adults. Forty-five states passed or amended legislation to send not only violent young offenders, but also teenagers convicted of burglary and drug offenses, into the adult system.
Those who are ultimately incarcerated in adult jails are often the victims of violent assault and suicide, and are 34 percent more likely to be re-arrested than those retained in the juvenile system. Once juveniles have been arrested and accused of serious crimes, certain factors need to be considered:
- Juveniles age 15 and younger are significantly more likely than older adolescents and young adults to be impaired in ways that compromise their …show more content…
The most recent American study on juvenile suicide in adult institutions and youth facilities in different states found that the suicide rate of juveniles in adult jails was 7.7 times higher than that of juvenile detention centers. Five times as many youth held in adult prisons reported attempted sexual attacks. Surveys in other countries have found similarly higher rape rates for young offenders in adult institutions. Studies have also reported higher assault rates for juveniles in adult facilities. Such research findings are currently being ignored by Congress as it considers legislation that would have the effect of increasing the number of juveniles housed in adult