The juvenile justice organization is rooted in the normal criminal justice organization. The major objective of a juvenile court might be different from the criminal court; however, the procedures have resemblance in application. The organizations are anchored in shielding society and seizing criminals responsible for their deeds.
Once a juvenile goes into the juvenile justice structure, he or she goes through the intake procedure, detention, adjudication, disposition and aftercare (Scholte, 2002). The initial stage is intake. The intake procedure is also recognized as prosecution in the adult courts. In this stage, the court or prosecutor establishes whether to prosecute the case in juvenile court. Factors looked at this stage include; the proof of the crime, the gravity of the crime, the delinquent’s preceding unlawful and court history and the success of rehabilitation appraisals of the juvenile. Rooted in societal and legal results, the case might be discharged, taken care of off the record or an official trial may be applied for. All through the intake processing or before an official disposition, the youth might be put in a detention facility. Detention may lengthen to the official trial, or after adjudication.
Once at the formal hearing phase, the prosecutor can put forward a waiver or a delinquency petition. Once a determination is made, the juvenile might either remain in juvenile court or is moved to the criminal court. If he or she stays in juvenile court, an adjudication hearing occurs. A determination is made anchored in the proof offered. If the juvenile is adjudicated as felonious, the disposition hearing occurs. In the disposition hearing, probation proposals or a disposition plan is considered. A prosecutor and delinquent might as well present any concurrence reached for the judge’s consideration. The disposition verdict is derived from the plans. They could have a multiplicity of conditions, for instance restitution, detention facility imprisonment, and counsel or community service. Dependent on the state, the juvenile might as well undergo rehabilitation in a juvenile correctional facility. If this occurs, aftercare (alike parole) will be compulsory after release (Steinberg, 2006).
Characteristics of a typical delinquent
A juvenile delinquent is a youthful individual who has been found guilty of a delinquent act. The materialization of conduct difficulties can be noticed at the age of two. Resistance to parents and violent actions with other children is a normal developmental trail for kids. These oppositional conducts characteristically decrease in the ages of 3 to 6 as kids obtain the aptitude to employ apposite speech; this aptitude ease the expression of requirements and sentiments in addition to the decree of conflict. On the other hand, failure to grow corresponding conducts like sincerity, non-aggression and deference for authority might cause problematical behaviors for example: Authority Conflict‐ obstinate and insolent actions, defiance to parents and authority persons, avoiding classes or non- attendance school or escaping home as a way of shunning laws and instructions (Loeber and Hay, 2004). The second one is Covert Acts that is dishonesty; stealing, vandalism and fire‐setting or more grave shapes of property harm for instance burglary. Overt Acts is the third one and it entails; infuriating and harassing others, physical combating, gang hostility and other aggressive deeds like assaulting others via weapon and sexual molestation. If one fears that ones kid might be following a trail in the direction of criminal behavior or is at an elevated risk for mounting these conducts then one should remember that prevention is the best resolution.
If one learns the characteristics many delinquents as sentenced by courts then, one might finish off that the characteristic youthful criminal is unlike his or her peers in some ways. Some of these attributes emerge to be primary behavioral factors namely hyperactivity, propensity to alcoholism, decreased calculated aptitude, psychosis and diminutive build and poor health. Some distinguishing approaches are based on public interaction. They include terrible temper, detested by peers, troublesome behavior especially in school, liable to violence, deprived work and awful results at school
Some of the traits can be linked to the background. For example under environment, they could be living in a region of elevated criminal behavior. Under family dynamics, one could have abusive or poor parents or parents with poor supervision thus irregular discipline. The delinquents could also demonstrate lack of affection resulting from family interaction exemplified by antisocial conduct.
We have observed then that, consistent with pragmatists there is a cluster of individuals whose conduct can be classified as delinquent. These groups are well symbolized by individuals who are seized the law enforcement, in order that we can establish assumptions concerning their attributes on the recognized traits of individuals who have undergone processing. Youths recognized by the law enforcement agencies possess traits that make them diverse from the non-delinquent populace. Their misconduct is a universal trait - juvenile individuals who bring about trouble in school are additionally probable to be criminals than individuals who do not, moreover youthful delinquents do not dedicate their selves to any enormous degree. There is a delinquent vocation, a sequence of phases , even though delinquents are able to, and habitually do, discontinue at any individual phase, as well as either carry on to commit the offences suitable to that phase or stop the action on the whole. The enormous preponderance of youthful delinquents do stop their illegal actions prior to maturity, however individuals who start earliest are inclined to carry on the longest (Federal Bureau of Investigation ,1999).
References
Federal Bureau of Investigation (1999). Crime in the United States: Uniform crime reports. Washington DC: Government Printing Office.
Loeber R. & Hay D. F. (2004). Developmental approaches to aggression and conduct problems. In Development through life: A handbook for clinicians Oxford England: Blackwell Scientific Publications.
Scholte E. M. (2002)Identification of children at risk at the police station and the prevention of delinquency.
Steinberg L. (2006)Psychiatry: Interpersonal and biological processes. 4Adolescence (4th Ed.).). New York: McGraw-Hill.
