Juvenile crime is an issue growing in relevance by the day. The most visible cases appear regularly in newspapers across the country. These once shocking but now all-too-common-place instances of youth violence in schools, on the streets, and at home are having profound effects on Americans, and many experts believe that a rise in juvenile crime is imminent. Their expectations are founded on U.S. Census Bureau projections that the population of juveniles ages 15 to 17--the age group responsible for two-thirds of all juvenile arrests--is expected to increase almost 20 percent by 2007. Juvenile Crime, a new volume in the Library in a Book series, takes a serious look at this important topic. It examines juvenile offenders, their crimes, and the consequences of those crimes to themselves, to their victims, and to society. This book provides an overview of the juvenile justice system, how it has evolved, and how it works today, and it examines the impact of tough new state laws on minors in the system. It deals with a broad range of issues, including trends in both violent and property crimes as well as status offenses; juvenile offenders; causes of delinquency and substance abuse; youth gangs and related homicides; school crime and juvenile sex offenders; probation and confinement; juveniles doing adult time; and perceptions, causes, and prevention of juvenile crime. The impact of such court cases as Kent v. United States, In re Gault et al., and Smith v. Daily Mail Publishing Company is addressed. Coverage includes:The roots of the U.S. juvenile justice system in the Illinois Juvenile Court Act of 1899, which established the first juvenile court in the United StatesExplanations of the current procedures in the juvenile justice systemJuvenile crime statistics and information on youth gangs, school violence, substance abuse, and juvenile justice Extracts from court cases such as In re Gault et al. Excerpted from Juvenile Crime by Jeffrey Ferro All rights reserved by the original copyright owners. Excerpts are provided for display purposes only and may not be reproduced, reprinted or distributed without the written permission of the publisher.
