The Juvenile Justice: History, Evolution and Rehabilitation Programs

This article discusses the history of the juvenile justice system in America through five main periods. It also explores the evolution of the system and the rehabilitation programs for youth offenders. The main target of the juvenile justice system is the rehabilitation of children and youth. Subject: Criminal Law, Course Code: N/A, Course Name: N/A, College/University: N/A

Running head: THE JUVENILE JUSTICE
The Juvenile Justice
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THE JUVENILE JUSTICE
Table of Contents
Introduction....................................................................................................................2
Discussion......................................................................................................................2
Five periods of Juvenile Justice History....................................................................2
Evolution of juvenile justice system..........................................................................3
Conclusion......................................................................................................................4
References......................................................................................................................5

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Introduction
The area of criminal law that is applicable to children or individuals who have not yet
attended the age to be considered responsible for any criminal acts is known as the juvenile
justice (Monahan, Steinberg & Piquero, 2015). The juvenile justice system of America is the
basic method that is used to handle youngsters who are being convicted of any crimes or
misdeeds. The main target of this system is the rehabilitation of children and youth.
Discussion
Five periods of Juvenile Justice History
The juvenile justice system has undergone many changes in America, the history of
the juvenile justice system can be represented through five main periods.
Puritan Period (1646-1824): During this period, the Massachusetts Stubborn Child Law was
passed. The Puritans believed that it is the responsibility of the parents to discipline and raise
youths and if child disobeyed their parents, then they would be subject to law and were to be
put to death.
Refuge Period (1824-1899): Juvenile delinquency was defined in this period. Correctional
homes were constructed for children who were convicted of crimes. Institutions were run by
strict programs of work, studies and disciplines.
Juvenile Court Period (1899-1960): Separate juvenile court system was formed in this era and
an act was passed for the children below 16 in 1899 (Parsloe, 2017). The act had four main
part which were-a separate court for the juveniles, few adversarial process, children to be
kept separate from the adults, program for assisting the court to decide the best for the
children.

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Juvenile Rights Period (1960-1980): In this period, children in a delinquency hearing were
provided with some basic procedural rights. The supreme court ordered that all children and
youth in confinements or involved in the court proceedings should have some constitutional
rights.
Crime Control Period (1980-2005): Juveniles were subject to harsher punishments and held
in preventive detention before trial if they were considered a threat to the society. Crime
control policies resulted the juveniles being treated in adult courts if they were involved in
any serious and violent crimes.
Evolution of juvenile justice system
The Juvenile Rights period was the most influential period. The decision of the U.S
Supreme Court on 1967 made a great change in the history of the juvenile system (Liles &
Moak, 2015). The court concluded that juveniles subject to the civil proceedings faced a
potential loss of liberty and hence all the offenders who have not yet attended their adulthood
and facing possible confinements have some basic constitutional rights.
 Right to receive charge notice
 Right to acquire legal counsel
 Right to confrontation
 Right of receiving transcript of proceedings
 Right to appeal
Because of these basic rights, new laws and programs were constructed to treat the youth
offenders separately and differently than the adults. In the present era, juveniles under the age
of 18 are not punished the same way as the adults (Ehrhard-Dietzel, Barton & Hickey, 2017).
Considering their age, their crime and other factors the youth are send to correctional homes
and are given additional attentions according to their requirements.

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Conclusion
The juvenile system has been introduced way back for the protection of the children and
youth in the society so that they do not get influenced by the adult criminals and follow their
footsteps. The system aims to provide effective rehabilitation programs to the juveniles so
that they can become a productive citizen in the near future.

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References
Ehrhard-Dietzel, S., Barton, M. S., & Hickey, D. A. (2017). Implementation and Outcomes of
an Innovative Front End Juvenile Justice Reform Initiative. Child and Adolescent
Social Work Journal, 34(3), 223-234.
Liles, A., & Moak, S. C. (2015). Changing juvenile justice policy in response to the US
Supreme Court: Implementing Miller v. Alabama. Youth Justice, 15(1), 76-92.
Monahan, K., Steinberg, L., & Piquero, A. R. (2015). Juvenile justice policy and practice: A
developmental perspective. Crime and justice, 44(1), 577-619.
Parsloe, P. (2017). Juvenile justice in Britain and the United States: The balance of needs
and rights. Routledge.