Over several hundred years, the juvenile justice system has evolved from one in which a child offender was prosecuted under the same guidelines used for adults to the current system in which society has recognized the unique status of juveniles within the criminal justice framework. Written by world-renowned legal scholar Cliff Roberson, Juvenile Justice: Theory and Practice provides a comprehensive overview of the system that administers the prosecution of young offenders. It examines how the juvenile justice system began, its current state, and the direction it appears to be heading.
Topics discussed include:
- Types of juvenile delinquency cases, arrest statistics, juvenile justice organizations, and the concept of judicial waiver
- The history of juvenile courts, including the parens patriae doctrine, early laws, In re Gault, and concepts of reform versus punishment
- Delinquency causation philosophies, including social, cultural deviance, symbolic interactionist, and psychological theories
- Types of abuse and neglect, child protective services, and child abuse prevention programs
- Law enforcement agencies, the structure of juvenile courts, juvenile court procedures, transfers to criminal court, and the concept of individual rights
- Juvenile probation and parole, juvenile institutions, group homes, boot camps, and shock programs
- Selected issues in juvenile justice, including drug abuse, juvenile sex offenders, and youth gangs
The book cites actual court cases to demonstrate concepts, provides review questions at the end of each chapter, and includes a glossary of relevant terms. A concise and practical text on juvenile justice, this volume facilitates understanding of this complex and critical subject.
An Overview of Juvenile Justice
Juvenile Justice Defined
Juvenile Court Authority
Measuring Delinquency
Serious Violent Crimes by Juveniles
Nonviolent Crimes
Juvenile Justice Organizations
Judicial Waiver
Development of Juvenile Courts
Childhood
parens patriae
Early Laws
Development of Juvenile Courts in the United States
Juvenile Justice and the Supreme Court
Punish or Reform
Delinquency Causation Theories
Basic Assumptions of Delinquent Behavior
Explaining Juvenile Delinquency
Classical School
Positivist School
Social Theories
Social Control Theories
Cultural Deviance Theories
Subcultural
Social Disorganization Theories
Symbolic Interactionist Theories
Biological Theories
Psychological Theories
Schools
Male Delinquency
Abused and Neglected Children
Types of Abuse
Nature of the Problems
Family Influences
Neglected Children
Child Abuse
Missing Children
Child Protective Services
Law Enforcement and Juveniles
Historical Overview
Structure of Agencies
Consequences of Arrest
Disposition of Youths
Juveniles’ Attitudes toward Law Enforcement
Community Policing
Curfews
Courts in the Juvenile Justice System
Philosophy
Organizational Structures of Juvenile Courts
Jurisdiction
Jurisdictional Responsibilities of Juvenile Courts
Structure
Actors in Juvenile Court
Rights of Juveniles and Parents
Overview of the Procedures in Juvenile Court
Opening a Case
Temporary Custody of the Juvenile
Petition to Juvenile Court
Jurisdiction Hearing
Disposition Hearing
Postdisposition Hearing
Direct Filing in Adult Criminal Court
Waiver/transfer Hearing
Procedures in Juvenile Court
Delinquency Cases
Detention Hearings
Citation
Venue
Jurisdiction or Intake Hearing
Adjudicatory Hearings
Disposition Hearing
Victims’ Rights
Dependency, Abuse, and Neglect Cases
Court Orders
Cases referred to Criminal Courts
Juveniles in Criminal Court
Kent v. United States
In re Gault
Breed v. Jones
In re Winship
McKeiver v. Pennsylvania
Standards for the Administration of Juvenile Justice
Concurrent Jurisdiction
Uniform Juvenile Court Act
Selected State Court Decisions
Right to Appeal a Transfer to Criminal Court
Juvenile Court and Individual Rights
Standards for Juvenile Justice
Due Process
Waiver of Fourth Amendment Rights
Waiver of Counsel
Rights at a Probation Revocation Hearing
Key Supreme Court Cases
Juvenile Probation
Juvenile Probation
History of Probation
Status of Probation
Extent of Probation
Conditions of Probation
Probationers’ Rights
Functions of Probation
Predisposition Evaluations
Parental Involvement in Probation
Requirement to Apologize
Juvenile Institutions and Early Releases
Types of Institutions
Typical Juvenile Facilities
Releases
Determinate and Indeterminate Sentencing
History of Parole
Parole Today
The Parole Decision
Parole Services
Revocation of Parole
Discharge from Parole
Juvenile Group Homes
Overview of the Missouri Division of Youth Services
(DYS)
Referral to a Group Home
Effectiveness of Group Homes
Boot Camps and Shock Programs
Characteristics of Boot Camps
Evaluation of Boot Camp Programs
Shock Incarceration
Rehabilitative Programming
Attitudinal Change
Recidivism
Selected Issues in Juvenile Justice
Drug Abusers
Juvenile Drug Courts
Juvenile Sex Offenders
Youth Gangs
Appendix: Common Terms Used in Juvenile Corrections
Biography
Cliff Roberson LLM, Ph.D. is Academic Chair, Graduate School of Criminal Justice at Kaplan University and Emeritus Professor of Criminal Justice at Washburn University. He has authored or co-authored 52 books and texts.
In 2009, a research study conducted by a group of professors from Sam Houston State University determined that Cliff Roberson was the leading criminal justice author in the United States based upon on his publications and their relevance to the profession.
—Southwest Journal of Criminal Justice, Vol.6, issue 1, 2009
