Should the Juvenile Justice System Should Focus on Rehabilitation
Should the juvenile justice system should focus on rehabilitation
By:
CJS/240
January 17, 2011
University Of Phoenix
There has been much of a debate over whether or not punishment or
rehabilitation should be the prime focus of the juvenile justice system. In
the past, the focus has gone from punishment to rehabilitation and back
again. This swing seems to occur based more on the community 's
response to juvenile delinquents rather than on how well either one of
these strategies will actually work. Rehabilitation should be the primary
focus of the juvenile justice system; however, punishment should not be
abolished all together. This paper will explore many reasons why
rehabilitation should be the main focus of the juvenile justice system.
The purpose of this paper is to inform the audience about rehabilitation.
It will be defined as programs and therapies that will allow any juvenile
delinquent to reenter the society as a contributing member to their
community. Examples of such programs are behavior modification
therapies, education, work programs, and counseling. Each of these
programs are aiming to correct an areas that needs such improving or
correction in.
The juvenile justice system should focus on rehabilitation because it
can reduce time spent incarcerated, it can address more of the needs of
delinquents, it allows delinquents to become more productive members
of society, and it can reduce the costs associated with incarcerating
youths. The article Juvenile Justice states that we should encourage
more rehabilitation. It also states that focusing on punishment rather
than rehabilitation is "leading to more repeat offenders, and ultimately,
depriving both society and the offenders themselves of their full
potential." (The League of Young Voters. 2009) The reasoning behind
this is that offenders are being punished for their delinquent acts but are
not
By:
CJS/240
January 17, 2011
University Of Phoenix
There has been much of a debate over whether or not punishment or
rehabilitation should be the prime focus of the juvenile justice system. In
the past, the focus has gone from punishment to rehabilitation and back
again. This swing seems to occur based more on the community 's
response to juvenile delinquents rather than on how well either one of
these strategies will actually work. Rehabilitation should be the primary
focus of the juvenile justice system; however, punishment should not be
abolished all together. This paper will explore many reasons why
rehabilitation should be the main focus of the juvenile justice system.
The purpose of this paper is to inform the audience about rehabilitation.
It will be defined as programs and therapies that will allow any juvenile
delinquent to reenter the society as a contributing member to their
community. Examples of such programs are behavior modification
therapies, education, work programs, and counseling. Each of these
programs are aiming to correct an areas that needs such improving or
correction in.
The juvenile justice system should focus on rehabilitation because it
can reduce time spent incarcerated, it can address more of the needs of
delinquents, it allows delinquents to become more productive members
of society, and it can reduce the costs associated with incarcerating
youths. The article Juvenile Justice states that we should encourage
more rehabilitation. It also states that focusing on punishment rather
than rehabilitation is "leading to more repeat offenders, and ultimately,
depriving both society and the offenders themselves of their full
potential." (The League of Young Voters. 2009) The reasoning behind
this is that offenders are being punished for their delinquent acts but are
not
References: American Civil Liberties Union. (1996, July 5). ACLU Fact Sheet on the Juvenile Justice System Retrieved Jan.10, 2011, from http://www.aclu.org/crimjustice/juv/10091res19960705.html Day, A., Howells, K., & Rickwood, D. (2004, October). Current trends in the rehabilitation of juvenile offenders [T&I no. 284]. In Australian Institute of Criminology. Retrieved Jan.10, 2009, from http://www.aic.gov.au/publications/tandi2/tandi284t.html The League of Young Voters. (2009). Juvenile Justice The League of Young Voters. In Theleague.com. Retrieved Jan 10, 2011, from http://theleague.com/issues/juvenile-justice McKeenan, Michael. Interview on May 1, 2009. Mellen, G. (2008, May 20). A historical struggle: Punishment or rehabilitation? - Press-Telegram. In HOME - Press-Telegram. Retrieved Jan. 10, 2011, from http://www.presstelegram.com/justice/ Public Willing to Pay More for Rehabilitation of Juvenile Offenders; Models for Change: Systems Reform in Juvenile Justice. (2008). In Models for Change: Systems Reform in Juvenile Justice; Home. Retrieved Jan.10, 2011, from http://www.modelsforchange.net/newsroom/ Shepard Jr., R. (2009). Criminal Justice Magazine Article. In American Bar Association - Defending Liberty, Pursuing Justice. Retrieved Jan. 10, 2011, from http://www.abanet.org/crimjust/juvjus/cjpublic.html