PSY 201: Juvenile Justice System Analysis Assignment, Spring 2020

This assignment, completed for PSY 201, addresses key aspects of the juvenile justice system. The student explores the pitfalls of judicial waivers, examining the potential dangers to juveniles' mental stability and development. The assignment outlines the criteria used by courts for waiving juvenile cases to adult court. It identifies surprising factors within the modern juvenile justice system, such as the influence of violence at home and poverty. The student also discusses racial disparity, focusing on how children from minority communities face harsher punishments. Finally, the assignment evaluates the concept of blended sentences, considering their role in mitigating crime rates and the importance of considering the offender's age and the nature of the offense. The assignment is supported by references to course materials.

Running head: PSY 201
PSY 201
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note

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PSY 201
Q1:
A judicial waiver occurs when the judge of a juvenile court transfers a case to adult
court in order to disqualify the defence of juvenile protection to the offender. The court offers
waiver in cases where the crime is heinous enough to be treated by the adult court or where
the juvenile was a part of serious offence previously. However, this can be dangerous firstly;
the juvenile might not have the mental stability to understand the delicacy of the judicial
approach taken by the criminal court and secondly, it might be detrimental to their mental
growth as a child (al-Asaadi 2016).
Q2:
The court, while waiving a juvenile case, takes into consideration
 the eligible age of the offender to transfer his or her to the criminal court.
 Type or seriousness of the offence
 The previous record of criminal cases by the offender.
Q3:
In my opinion, the two factors are that influence modern juvenile justice system is,
 Violence in the home: most of the children are evidencing fierceness at their home by
their parents, relatives who are acting as a factor for increasing criminal mentality in
them.
 Poverty: Poverty is also acting as an important factor in increasing criminal mentality
in the children.

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PSY 201
Q4:
 Children of black people face more racial disparity than children of the white
group in the modern juvenile system is the USA.
 The crime report shows children’s of the minor community are often subjected
to tougher punishment compared to the crime committed by them.
 This discrimination gives rise to mental disorder in those children who might
brutally get affected by the torture they face in jail at such tender age (DeWall,
Nathan, and Myers 2017)
Q5:
A blended sentence is a mixture of juvenile court sentence and adult court sentence
which are imposed in certain serious crime to a juvenile offender. It is a good idea in
mitigating crime rate. This type of sentencing appeared during the period of increasing
juvenile crime which was heinous in nature. It emerges as a negotiation between those who
wanted to ensure public safety and liability of juvenile offenders and those who wanted to
strengthen the customary juvenile justice system. However, the age of the offender and the
degree of the offence must be taken into consideration by the court while giving judgment.

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PSY 201
Reference:
al-Asaadi, Mohammed. "We sleep afraid, we wake up afraid’: A child’s life in Yemen." The
New York Times (2016).
DeWall, C. Nathan, and David G. Myers. "Teaching Current Directions in Psychological
Science." APS Observer 30.5 (2017).