Juvenile Corrections

Dennis, a 15-year-old juvenile, has been adjudicated delinquent in a case where he stole a car. Dennis has had no prior adjudications in the juvenile court; however, he has been detained by police on two previous occasions for theft and disorderly conduct. In both of the previous detainment’s by police, Dennis was released to the custody of his parents with no formal charges filed. Dennis currently lives with both his parents at home, attends school fairly regularly, and has average grades. He does not currently have a job and expresses a wish to remain in school to finish his degree. On the basis of the factors discussed in this module, what sentence do you think Dennis deserves? What determining factors weighed most in your decision? If you decide to grant probation in this case, what conditions would you impose on Dennis? If you decide to commit Dennis to a placement, what factors weighed most heavily on your decision? 2. Given the range of alternatives discussed in this module, which of the community correctional programs do you think would be most appropriate for nonviolent offenders? Which components of these programs do you think would be most beneficial for nonviolent offenders? If the juvenile has a substance abuse problem, which program or programs would you think would be most effective in deterring the juvenile from committing future delinquent acts? 3. Write a mission statement for a long-term, secure, state-operated juvenile correctional institution. Your mission statement should reflect the correctional goals you think will be most effective in preventing recidivism among the juveniles you serve. Be sure to list several goals and related objectives in your statement. 4. Develop a list of criteria you would use to make a determination of whether a juvenile should be sent to a secure placement facility. Your criteria should examine the following variables: the offense committed, the impact of the offense on the victim, the juvenile’s criminal history, the juvenile’s socio-demographic profile, the juvenile’s psychological profile, and any other characteristics you deem relevant.