Perhaps the highest hurdle in front of juvenile offender rehabilitation lies with in the system itself. Negative experiences with custody and detainment specifically may effect the ability of the juvenile offender to rehabilitate. The nation’s first juvenile court convened in Chicago, on July 3, 1899. Social reformers who pushed for the court believed in the premise that kids were different from adults. The juvenile court aimed to rehabilitate, not punish, and the facilities where juveniles served their time were supposed to help that process along. Juveniles were then to be set free when they were deemed rehabilitated or reached 21, whichever came first. In addition, records were generally kept confidential to allow the juvenile to return to society with all the advantages of the general population (Belser & Cannon, 2004).
When juvenile crime began to rise, society lost patience with rehabilitation and as a result, shifted to a method of treating juvenile offenders more like adults. Many youth correctional facilities have become chiefly about custody and punishment rather than the more practical rehabilitation. These facilities often lack qualified professionals who can help these juveniles. Services such as mental health, substance abuse treatment, and academic services are generally not provided at all or are provided by those who do not have the education or experience to implement them.
Correctional officers in these facilities are also often not adequately trained and lack the patience required to interact with juvenile offenders. These shortcomings often lead to inmate abuse and mistreatment. Juvenile justice facilities across the nation are in a dangerously advanced state of disarray, with violence as an almost everyday occurrence and rehabilitation the exception rather than the rule. They are also chronically short of money, which means fewer staff, more overcrowding–in short more trouble (Belser & Cannon, 2004). Abused juveniles leave the facility with a particularly strong distain towards adults in positions of authority. They leave the facility angrier and more disturbed than when they were first committed. They then will continue to commit crimes that may escalate in level of violence. Therefore, treatment of juveniles in these facilities should be an issue of concern for all members of society.
In addition to poor experiences in facilities, juveniles who are involved in the system may also develop a particular contempt for juvenile court personnel and law enforcement. Often this development is through no fault of the personnel’s at all. However, in some instances disparate enforcement and abuses of power may create distain for all positions of authority the juvenile comes into contact. The presence of gender bias in juvenile justice is one such disparity along with racial biases among others. A juvenile’s contact with the juvenile justice system should not be a “walk in the park,” however, it should be a learning experience. The sanctions imposed on young offenders should fit the violation and be administered equally. The purpose of juvenile justice is to rehabilitate young offenders not to enhance their chances of re-offending.
Reference:
- Belser, V., & Cannon, A. (2004). Juvenile Injustice. U.S. News & World Report, 137, 1-4.
