Juvenile Delinquency In The United States

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With the influx of juvenile crimes in the past decade, the criminal justice system has had a heavy burden. Knowing that juvenile delinquency has become a problem in most states there has been much debate over how to reduce or end this trend. In Pennsylvania the numbers are just growing to unmanageable numbers. In 1978, The Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency originated with the mission to improve the criminal justice system (PCCD, 2012). Working closely with the Governor’s Office, the Commission helps coordinate the work of state and local criminal justice agencies to increase communication, effectiveness, and efficiencies by providing training to deputy sheriffs and constables. It also provides technical assistance to a number…show more content…
They reported that crime arrests increased between 1987 and 1994. Juvenile crimes, such as theft, simple assault, drug abuse, and disorderly conduct account for nearly half of all youth arrests with the leading cause of youth arrests in theft (Lawyer Shop, 2008). Drug abuse violations arrests have increased since 1990. In 1990, they represented 6.0 percent of all arrest and 7.7 percent of Part II offense arrests (PCCD, 2012). In 2010, drug abuse violations comprised 12.2 percent of all arrests and 14.9 percent of all Part II offense arrests (PCCD, 2012). Juvenile crime has been in a steady decline according to the 2010 report, but it does not show the true face of crime because it does not account for crime that is committed without being caught. In 2010, reported offenses totaled 931,606 in Pennsylvania. This is a 2.5 percent decrease from 2009 and both Part I and Part II offenses saw a decrease from 2009 (PCCD, 2012). Weed and Seed was an initiative by the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency that takes an approach to community improvement through the use of crime reduction activities. The goal is to remove community violence one neighborhood at a time. This type of program can be identified by the…show more content…
The government has taken notice and legislation has commenced that requires the use of government prevention programs to help assist the states in reducing crimes. The Government places a strong emphasis on preventing juvenile crime and rehabilitating young offenders using diversionary and restorative justice programs rather than the traditional criminal justice system (NSW, 2012). The idea is to stop juveniles from committing crime before they actually do. They want to put a stop to juveniles who commit crime by creating special programs that teach them that committing acts of violence are normally a sign of future criminal behavior. Educating communities and children about the dangers of substance abuse and violence, the behavior will decline. Government intervention has the following goals in mind: • Reducing crime; • Lower substance abuse; • Improve educational outcomes, such as test scores and graduation rates; • Decrease teen pregnancy; • Reduce suicide rates among youth; • Reduce child abuse and neglect

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