Juveniles

14 Pages 3489 Words

Overrepresentation of minorities in the juvenile justice system is well established. On a national level, minority youths are arrested in numbers greatly disproportionate to their numbers in the general population. While black youths comprise approximately 15% of the ten to seventeen year old populations at risk for delinquency, recent figures indicate that they constitute approximately 28% of youths arrested (Engen; et al.). Further, according to the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention's "Children in Custody" census, minority overrepresentation increases dramatically as one moves beyond arrest to later stages in processing. For example, minorities constitute approximately 62% of youths held in short-term detention facilities, and approximately 60% of those committed to "deep end" long-term institutional programs (Engen; et al.).
Quite apart from issues related either to the extent or causes of differential minority involvement in crime, a number of researchers have expressed concern about whether the juvenile justice system operates with a selection bias that differentially disadvantages minority youths.
Race Effects in Juvenile Justice Decision-Making: Findings of a Statewide Analysis
This study was divided into two parts. In Part I, the researchers reported the findings of quantitative analyses conducted using official records of cases processed through the juvenile justice system in Florida. In Part II, they supplemented and provided a basis for a more detailed interpretation of the quantitative findings, drawing upon in-depth interviews with system insiders—juvenile judges, state's attorneys, public defenders, and social service personnel.
Data for the quantitative portions of this study were obtained from the Client Information System maintained by Florida's Department of Health and Rehabilitative Services. The data set includes the total population of youths referred for juvenile intake proc...