Delinquency And Juvenile Justice in American Society

by Shelden, Randall G.

• ISBN13: 9781577663997
• ISBN10: 1577663993
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2005-10-18
• Publisher: Waveland Pr Inc

Author Biography

Randall C. Shelden is a Professor in the Department of Criminal Justice, University of Nevada-Las Vegas (UNLV).

Table of Contents

Preface	xiii
Introduction	1	(8)
PART I The Nature and Extent of Delinquency	9	(172)
Delinquency and Juvenile Justice in Historical Perspective	11	(34)
The Invention of Childhood	12	(4)
Little Adults	13	(1)
Literacy	14	(1)
Schools	15	(1)
Punishment of Children in the Colonies	16	(2)
Parens Patriae	18	(2)
Defining a Juvenile Delinquent	20	(1)
The House of Refuge Movement	20	(7)
Changing Conceptions of Delinquency	23	(2)
Ex Parte Crouse: Court Decisions and Effects	25	(1)
People v. Turner	26	(1)
Mid-Nineteenth Century Reforms	27	(2)
Late-Nineteenth Century Reforms	29	(1)
The Child Saving Movement and the Juvenile Court	30	(4)
Delinquency, Public Schools, and Industry	34	(3)
Twentieth-Century Developments in Juvenile Justice	37	(2)
Summary	39	(6)
Notes	39	(6)
The Extent of Delinquency	45	(32)
Measuring Delinquency	45	(7)
FBI Uniform Crime Reports	46	(1)
Index Crimes	47	(1)
Part II Crimes	47	(1)
Critique of the FBI Report	48	(4)
How Much Delinquency Is There?	52	(9)
Arrest Figures	52	(3)
Racial and Gender Differences	55	(1)
Juvenile Court Statistics	56	(2)
Self-Report Studies	58	(3)
Juveniles as Victims	61	(5)
Child Abuse and Neglect	61	(2)
Juvenile Victims of Crime	63	(1)
Victimization Surveys	64	(2)
Delinquent Careers	66	(5)
Summary	71	(6)
Notes	71	(6)
The Nature of Delinquency	77	(30)
Varieties of Delinquent Behavior	78	(3)
Property Crimes	81	(5)
Shoplifting	81	(2)
Vandalism	83	(1)
Graffiti	83	(3)
Joyriding	86	(1)
Violent Crimes	86	(11)
The Demographic Fallacy: More Kids Does Not Equal More Crime	88	(1)
Gang Violence: A Special Case	89	(4)
The Code of the Streets	93	(3)
Other Assaults: A Real or Contrived Increase	96	(1)
Public Order Offenses	97	(4)
Status Offenses	98	(2)
Runaways	100	(1)
Summary	101	(6)
Notes	102	(5)
Youth Gangs	107	(40)
A Brief History	107	(3)
What Is a Gang?	110	(4)
How Many Gangs and Gang Members Are There?	114	(1)
Gangs and Crime	115	(3)
Gang and Gang Member Typologies	118	(5)
Types of Gangs	121	(1)
Types of Gang Members	121	(2)
Gang Classifications	123	(15)
The Supergangs of Chicago: People and Folks	124	(1)
Hybrid Gangs	124	(1)
Chicano Gangs	125	(3)
Asian Gangs	128	(2)
African-American Gangs	130	(2)
White Gangs	132	(6)
Summary	138	(9)
Notes	139	(8)
Female Delinquency	147	(34)
The Extent of Female Delinquency	148	(12)
Recent Trends: National Arrest Data	148	(8)
Self-Report Surveys	156	(4)
The Nature of Female Delinquency	160	(13)
Shoplifting: The Prototypical Girls' Crime?	160	(1)
Status Offenses	161	(3)
Runaways	164	(2)
Prostitution	166	(1)
Girls and Violence	167	(2)
Relabeling Status Offenses	169	(1)
Aggression and Gender	170	(2)
Girls and Robbery	172	(1)
Summary	173	(8)
Notes	174	(7)
PART II Explaining Delinquency	181	(132)
Individualistic Theories of Delinquency	183	(24)
The Classical School	183	(8)
Deterrence Theory	185	(1)
Rational Choice Theory	186	(3)
The Crime Control and Due Process Models	189	(2)
The Positivist School	191	(4)
Biological Theories	195	(5)
Criminality as an Inherited Trait	196	(1)
Gene Warfare	197	(3)
Psychological Theories	200	(2)
Feeblemindedness and Crime	200	(1)
Psychoanalytic Theories	200	(1)
Personality Trait Theories	201	(1)
Mental Illness and Crime	201	(1)
Summary	202	(5)
Notes	202	(5)
Sociological Theories of Delinquency	207	(26)
Social Disorganization/Social Ecology Theory	207	(5)
Strain Theory	212	(7)
Crime and the American Dream	214	(3)
Differential Opportunity Structures	217	(1)
Social Embeddedness	218	(1)
Cultural Deviance Theories	219	(1)
Cohen's Culture of the Gang	219	(1)
Lower-Class Focal Concerns	219	(1)
Control Theory	220	(3)
Social Learning Theory	223	(2)
The Labeling Perspective	225	(2)
Critical/Marxist Perspectives	227	(2)
Summary	229	(4)
Notes	229	(4)
Delinquency in Context: Inequality in U.S. Society	233	(28)
The Capitalist Economic System	233	(12)
Recent Changes in the U.S. Economy	238	(7)
The Development of the Underclass	245	(5)
Poverty and Family Structure	250	(1)
Effects of Economic Changes on Delinquency	251	(3)
The Death of Childhood in the Inner Cities	254	(1)
Summary	254	(7)
Notes	255	(6)
Delinquency and the Family	261	(26)
The Family in Contemporary Society	262	(2)
Family Breakdown as a Cause of Delinquency	264	(7)
Broken Homes	265	(2)
Family Relationships	267	(3)
Parenting Styles	270	(1)
The Social Context of the Family	271	(2)
Girl Offenders and Their Families	273	(4)
Gang Members and Their Families	277	(3)
Children with Parents in Prison	280	(1)
Summary	281	(6)
Notes	282	(5)
Schools and Delinquency	287	(26)
Schooling in a Class Society	287	(2)
Schools as ``Day Prisons'' and ``Zero Tolerance'' Policies	289	(2)
How Safe Are Schools?	291	(3)
Statistics versus Fears	291	(2)
Suspension and Expulsion	293	(1)
Reinforcing Class and Race Inequality: Follow the Money	294	(3)
Tracking	297	(2)
School Failure and Delinquency	299	(3)
Falling Behind and Dropping Out	299	(1)
Contributing Factors	300	(2)
Crime in the Schools	302	(1)
Gangs and Schools	303	(4)
Summary	307	(6)
Notes	308	(5)
PART III Responses to Delinquency	313	(170)
Processing Offenders through the Juvenile Justice System: The Police and Juvenile Court	315	(36)
Juvenile Laws	315	(1)
The Rights of Juveniles	316	(3)
Juvenile Court: The Structure	319	(2)
Juvenile Justice: The Process	321	(3)
Initial Contact: The Police	322	(1)
Police Discretion and Juveniles	322	(2)
Juvenile Court Processing	324	(12)
Race, the ``War on Drugs,'' and Referrals to Juvenile Court	325	(3)
The Importance of Social Class: The ``Saints'' and the ``Roughnecks''	328	(2)
The Intake Process and the Decision to Detain	330	(4)
Adjudication	334	(2)
Keeping Offenders from Further Penetration	336	(2)
Diversion	336	(1)
Widening the Net or True Alternatives?	337	(1)
Probation	338	(3)
Giving Up on Delinquent Youth: Transfer to Adult Court	341	(4)
Summary	345	(6)
Notes	345	(6)
Prisons or ``Correctional'' Institutions: What's in a Name?	351	(36)
Commitment to an Institution	351	(1)
Short-Term Facilities	352	(7)
Adult Jails	353	(1)
Detention Centers	353	(4)
Shelter Care Facilities	357	(1)
Girls and Boys Town: A Unique Case	358	(1)
Long-Term Facilities	359	(3)
Reception and Diagnostic Centers	359	(1)
Ranches and Forestry Camps	360	(1)
Boot Camps	361	(1)
Institutional Populations	362	(2)
Racial Composition of Juvenile Institutions	364	(2)
Some Effects of Incarceration: The Inmate Social System and Victimization	366	(1)
The Social System of Institutions for Girls	367	(2)
The California Youth Authority: A Notorious Example	369	(5)
A Failed Treatment Program	374	(1)
High Recidivism Rates Plague Juvenile Prisons	375	(6)
Barriers to Reentry	377	(2)
Aftercare/Parole for Ex-Juvenile Offenders	379	(1)
Intensive Aftercare Programs	380	(1)
Summary	381	(6)
Notes	382	(5)
The Double Standard of Juvenile Justice	387	(28)
The Child-Saving Movement and the Juvenile Court	388	(4)
The Reformers	389	(2)
The Girl-Saving Movement	391	(1)
The Juvenile Court and the Double Standard of Juvenile Justice	392	(4)
Deinstitutionalization and Judicial Paternalism	396	(3)
The Conservative Backlash	396	(2)
The 1992 Reauthorization of the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act	398	(1)
Continuing Evidence of Gender Bias	399	(10)
Getting into the System	399	(2)
Girls on the Streets	401	(1)
Gender and Delinquency Referrals	402	(2)
Comparing Girls and Boys in Court	404	(1)
Girls Under Lock and Key	405	(3)
Girls, Race, and the New Double Standard of Juvenile Justice	408	(1)
Summary	409	(6)
Notes	410	(5)
Recent Trends: Getting Tough on Juveniles	415	(32)
The Formal Punishment of Children	416	(1)
The Cycle of Juvenile Delinquency and Justice	416	(2)
Juveniles Incarcerated in Adult Penitentiaries	418	(1)
The Ultimate Penalty	419	(6)
The Adolescent Brain	419	(3)
Juvenile Death Sentences	422	(1)
The Case of Roper v. Simmons	423	(2)
Zero Tolerance	425	(3)
Why Have We Become So Punitive?	428	(2)
The Conservative Philosophy and Religious Fundamentalism	428	(1)
Social and Political Factors	429	(1)
Getting Tough on Youth Gangs	430	(11)
Law Enforcement	431	(4)
Prosecution	435	(1)
The Courts	436	(1)
Legislatures	437	(1)
A Word about Boot Camps	438	(3)
Summary	441	(6)
Notes	441	(6)
Some Sensible Solutions	447	(36)
Thinking Outside the Box	448	(1)
Reclaiming Youth at Risk: An Alternative Way of Framing the Problem	449	(3)
Radical Nonintervention	452	(2)
Resurrecting an Old Perspective	452	(1)
An Assessment of Schur's Ideas	453	(1)
A Model Program: The Detention Diversion Advocacy Project	454	(3)
A New Paradigm: Restorative Justice	457	(1)
Intervention Typologies	458	(5)
Components of Successful Programs	459	(1)
The Effectiveness of Diversion	460	(1)
Foster Care and Group Homes	461	(2)
Broad-Based National Strategies	463	(5)
Other Pressing Matters	468	(5)
Ending the War on Drugs	468	(3)
Youth Courts	471	(1)
Drug Courts	472	(1)
What about Girls?	473	(4)
Children of the Night	475	(1)
National Programs of Girls, Incorporated	475	(2)
A Final Word	477	(1)
Summary	477	(6)
Notes	478	(5)
Index	483