informative speech on juvenile delinquency

Sample Persuasive Speech: Juveniles should/should not be tried as adults

Juveniles include delinquents, state offenders, and dependent/neglected children. Only delinquents commit acts that are defined as criminal for an adult. Criminal elements may use delinquents in the crimes for which an adult would be sentenced to death. A capital crime is not an excuse for not being tried as an adult. A youngster who is capable of taking a life once may be tempted to do it again, after serving a sentence in a juvenile prison. Everything depends on the seriousness of the crime. Juvenile places of detention are overcrowded. So, some juveniles may have a traumatic experience, housed in adult jails. Here, criminogenic influences may ruin any hopes of a positive transformation. Delinquency cases amount to about 1, 5 millions annually. More than half of them are property crimes. In 1994, 12, 000 delinquency cases were moved to adult criminal court by a process of certification after a transfer hearing. A disposition hearing may sentence up to 20 percent of delinquents to imprisonment. Only six percent of juvenile crimes are violent. About a third of all juvenile arrests for homicide occur in Los Angeles, Detroit, Chicago, and New York. Most juvenile crimes are gang-related. Are you ready to label a teenager a life-long criminal? Is it just to blame this person for unfavorable living conditions and unlucky circumstances that led to a criminal act? Adolescents and adults must be treated differently. First, juveniles are less responsible for their acts than adults. Second, they are less protective. Third, juveniles’ courts should not be modeled on the adult criminal system. Fourth, juvenile gangs are different from adult gangs. The threat of juvenile crime leads to more emphasis on punishment than on juveniles’ rights. First, rehabilitation has poor results. Second, organized delinquency is a real threat to metropolitan areas. Third, repeated crimes are committed. Juvenile courts defend juvenile rights. They do not hold juveniles to the standards of accountability similar to those of adults. Juvenile courts give a priority to treatment, not detention. They call for the social environment that nurtures delinquency being effectively changed. Juvenile courts’ primary mission is to serve the best interests of children. Unless preventive interventions are taken to involve juveniles in positive human activities, juvenile delinquents will be doomed to face justice as adults.

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111 Juvenile Delinquency Essay Topic Ideas & Examples

Inside This Article

Juvenile delinquency is a pressing issue that affects communities and families worldwide. It refers to the act of committing crimes by young individuals below the age of 18. Understanding the causes, consequences, and solutions to juvenile delinquency is crucial in addressing this problem effectively.

If you are tasked with writing an essay on juvenile delinquency, choosing a compelling topic is essential. To help you get started, here are 111 juvenile delinquency essay topic ideas and examples:

The impact of family structure on juvenile delinquency
The role of peer pressure in juvenile delinquency
Juvenile delinquency and mental health disorders
The relationship between poverty and juvenile delinquency
Juvenile delinquency and substance abuse
The influence of media on juvenile delinquency
The effectiveness of rehabilitation programs for juvenile delinquents
Juvenile delinquency and school dropout rates
The link between child abuse and juvenile delinquency
The role of genetics in juvenile delinquency
Juvenile delinquency and social media
The impact of neighborhood characteristics on juvenile delinquency
Juvenile delinquency and gang involvement
The relationship between juvenile delinquency and race/ethnicity
Juvenile delinquency and the juvenile justice system
The role of trauma in juvenile delinquency
Juvenile delinquency and recidivism rates
The influence of parental monitoring on juvenile delinquency
Juvenile delinquency and educational attainment
The impact of peer relationships on juvenile delinquency
Juvenile delinquency and juvenile detention centers
The relationship between juvenile delinquency and technology
Juvenile delinquency and juvenile curfew laws
The effectiveness of early intervention programs for at-risk youth
Juvenile delinquency and juvenile probation programs
The influence of social norms on juvenile delinquency
Juvenile delinquency and juvenile diversion programs
The role of gender in juvenile delinquency
Juvenile delinquency and juvenile court proceedings
The impact of trauma-informed care on juvenile delinquency
Juvenile delinquency and substance abuse treatment programs
The relationship between juvenile delinquency and child welfare services
Juvenile delinquency and community-based programs
The influence of school climate on juvenile delinquency
Juvenile delinquency and restorative justice practices
The role of law enforcement in addressing juvenile delinquency
Juvenile delinquency and school resource officers
The impact of social inequality on juvenile delinquency
Juvenile delinquency and mental health treatment
The relationship between juvenile delinquency and trauma exposure
Juvenile delinquency and gun violence
The influence of family dynamics on juvenile delinquency
Juvenile delinquency and cyberbullying
The role of community policing in preventing juvenile delinquency
Juvenile delinquency and school safety measures
The impact of parental involvement on juvenile delinquency
Juvenile delinquency and substance abuse prevention programs
The relationship between juvenile delinquency and foster care
Juvenile delinquency and the juvenile justice reform movement
The influence of social support networks on juvenile delinquency
Juvenile delinquency and the school-to-prison pipeline
The role of mental health stigma in juvenile delinquency
Juvenile delinquency and trauma-informed education
The impact of school discipline policies on juvenile delinquency
Juvenile delinquency and community engagement strategies
The relationship between juvenile delinquency and child advocacy programs
Juvenile delinquency and the juvenile justice system disparities
The influence of trauma-focused cognitive behavioral therapy on juvenile delinquency
Juvenile delinquency and the impact of adverse childhood experiences
The role of school counselors in addressing juvenile delinquency
Juvenile delinquency and the role of probation officers
The impact of mentoring programs on juvenile delinquency
Juvenile delinquency and the role of school resource officers
The relationship between juvenile delinquency and parental incarceration
Juvenile delinquency and the impact of school suspensions
The influence of community-based mental health services on juvenile delinquency
Juvenile delinquency and the role of school-based mental health screenings
The impact of trauma-focused interventions on juvenile delinquency
Juvenile delinquency and the relationship between poverty and crime
The role of parental involvement in preventing juvenile delinquency
Juvenile delinquency and the impact of school climate on student behavior
The relationship between juvenile delinquency and mental health disorders
Juvenile delinquency and the role of community-based mental health services
The influence of trauma-informed care on juvenile delinquency
The impact of parental involvement in preventing juvenile delinquency

Choose a topic that interests you and conduct thorough research to support your arguments and findings. By shedding light on the complexities of juvenile delinquency, you can contribute to the ongoing dialogue on how to prevent and address this critical issue in our society.

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Five Things About Youth and Delinquency

Research and data on youth and delinquency is critical for identifying opportunities and developing strategies to support positive development through prevention and intervention. Responses to youth misbehavior by youth-serving systems — including education, child welfare, behavioral health, and justice systems — can play an important role in promoting or disrupting youths’ healthy social and emotional development. The five findings below provide insights into the nature, scope, and context of youth and delinquency.

1. Youth risk-taking is part of the normative developmental process — with brain maturation continuing into early adulthood.

The cognitive control capacities needed to inhibit risk taking behaviors develop throughout adolescence — from the onset of puberty through the mid-20s. Exploration and risk taking are part of the natural developmental process during this period. [1] Research suggests environmental factors can affect youths’ development and impact risk trajectories. Exposure to positive factors, such as supportive relationships and positive role models, is associated with positive developmental trajectories. Exposure to negative factors, such as toxic stress caused by abuse and neglect, can reduce youths’ control of their moods and impulses and put or keep them on at-risk trajectories. [2]

2. Engagement in offending tends to increase through adolescence and then decline.

Research has consistently found the prevalence of offending increases during adolescence and subsequently declines, with most people eventually desisting from criminal behavior altogether. [3] For example, as illustrated in Exhibit 1 , data from 2020 on age-specific rates shows arrests for violent offenses increased from ages 10 to 22, stabilized from ages 23 to 29, and then declined. [4] Reduced offending behaviors happen for most youths regardless of formal intervention. Research also suggests formal punishments, including incarceration, may disrupt youths’ psychosocial development and increase the risk of reoffending, dropping out of school, and involvement in the criminal justice system. [5]

Exhibit 1: Age-specific arrest rates, 2020

Data from 2020 on age-specific rates shows arrests for violent offenses increased from ages 10 to 22, stabilized from ages 23 to 29, and then declined

3. Only a small percentage of youths are arrested for any crime — even fewer for violent crime.

Less than 1% of youths ages 0 to 17 were arrested for any offense in 2022, and less than a half of 1% were arrested for a violent offense. [6] Research has identified protective factors — individual, family, peer, school, and community — that can decrease the likelihood of youths engaging in delinquent behaviors. These factors may protect youths directly — regardless of other factors — or indirectly by reducing the negative effects of adverse experiences. [7] Interventions can increase the presence and influence of protective factors and may prevent the onset or continuation of delinquent behaviors. For example, Early Developmental Prevention Programs for At-Risk Youths — which focus on enhancing child, parent-child, or family well-being — are rated effective by CrimeSolutions at reducing future deviance and criminal justice involvement. For youths who have engaged in delinquent behaviors, justice-system interventions that are based on a therapeutic intervention philosophy (e.g., counseling, skills building), focus on high-risk youths, and have high-quality implementation can be effective at reducing recidivism across all levels of system penetration. [8] For example, Multisystemic Therapy — which is a family- and community-based treatment program targeting youths between the ages of 12 and 17 who present with serious antisocial and problem behavior and with serious criminal offenses — was rated effective by CrimeSolutions for reducing the number of rearrests and the number of days youths were incarcerated.

4. Youth arrests for violent offenses have declined from a historic peak in the mid-1990s.

The estimated number of youth arrests for violent crime — which includes murder, robbery, and aggravated assault — declined 67% from 2006 to 2020 ( see exhibit 2 ). [9] By 2020, violent crime arrests involving youths reached a new low: 78% below the 1994 peak. More recent data from the FBI’s National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS) indicate that youth arrests for violent crimes increased 17% between 2021 and 2022. [10] Nevertheless, trends show that both the number and rate of youth arrests for violent crime remain well below levels in the mid-1990s and the most recent uptick in youth arrests in the mid-2000s. The one-year increase in arrests should be viewed in this historical context and caution is warranted when predicting future patterns. [11]

Exhibit 2: Youth arrest rate trends, 1980-2020

5. The youth contribution to violent crime arrests is less than that from other age groups, including young adults.

The youth proportion of violent crime arrests declined from the mid-1990s (19%) [12] through at least 2020 (7%). [13] Based on data from NIBRS, youths accounted for 9.4% and young adults ages 18 to 24 accounted for 19.9% of all arrests for violent crime in 2022. [14] The youth proportion of arrests and their arrest rates for violent crime varied by offense. For example, young adults were arrested at higher rates for murder and aggravated assault; however, older youths (ages 15 to 17) had higher rates for robbery and carjacking. The National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS), sponsored by the Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS), collects victims’ perceptions of the age of individuals who perpetrate offenses. In 2022, 9.3% of violent incidents were perpetrated by individuals perceived to be ages 12 to 17, which did not differ significantly from this age group’s share of the population. Nearly 60% of violent incidents were committed by someone perceived to be age 30 or older and 24% by those ages 18 to 29 — when the age was reported by the victim. [15]

[note 1] National Academy of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (NAS), The Promise of Adolescence: Realizing Opportunity for All Youth (Washington, DC: The National Academies Press, 2019), https://doi.org/10.17226/25388 .

[note 2] NAS, The Promise of Adolescence, 77-94.

[note 3] National Institute of Justice, Desistance from Crime: Implications for Research, Policy, and Practice, Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs, National Institute of Justice, November 2021, NCJ 301497, https://www.ojp.gov/pdffiles1/nij/301497.pdf .

[note 4] “Statistical Briefing Book: Law Enforcement & Youth Crime,” Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, posted July 8, 2022, https://ojjdp.ojp.gov/statistical-briefing-book/crime/faqs/qa05301 .

[note 5] Development Services Group, Inc., Alternatives to Detention and Confinement, literature review (Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs, Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, 2024 (forthcoming)); National Research Council, Reforming Juvenile Justice: A Developmental Approach (Washington, DC: The National Academies Press, 2012), https://doi.org/10.17226/14685 ; NAS, The Promise of Adolescence.

[note 6] Based on NIBRS arrest estimates available from the FBI’s Crime Data Explorer website: https://cde.ucr.cjis.gov/ .

[note 7] Development Services Group, Inc., Protective Factors Against Delinquency, literature review (Washington, DC: Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, last updated December 2015), https://ojjdp.ojp.gov/sites/g/files/xyckuh176/files/media/document/protective_factors.pdf .

[note 8] Lipsey, M. W. (2009). The Primary Factors that Characterize Effective Interventions with Juvenile Offenders: A Meta-Analytic Overview. Victims & Offenders, 4(2), 124–147. https://doi. org/10.1080/15564880802612573

[note 9] Charles Puzzanchera, Trends in Youth Arrests for Violent Crimes, Juvenile Justice Statistics National Report Series Fact Sheet (Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs, Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, 2022), https://ojjdp.ojp.gov/publications/trends-in-youth-arrests.pdf .

[note 10] Arrest estimates post-2020 are not directly comparable to pre-2020 estimates due to the FBI’s transition from the Summary Reporting System (SRS) to the National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS).

[note 11] Jeffrey A. Butts and Howard N. Snyder, Too Soon to Tell: Deciphering Recent Trends in Youth Violence, (Chicago, IL: Chapin Hall Center for Children at the University of Chicago, November 2006), https://ncjj.org/PDF/Howardpubs/CHIB110-YouthCrime.pdf .

[note 12] Howard N. Snyder, Juvenile Justice Bulletin: Juvenile Arrests 1995 (Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs, Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, February 1997), https://www.ojp.gov/pdffiles/163813.pdf ; and Howard N. Snyder, Juvenile Justice Bulletin: Juvenile Arrests 1996 (Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs, Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, November 1997), https://www.ojp.gov/pdffiles/arrest96.pdf .

[note 13] Charles Puzzanchera, Trends in Youth Arrests for Violent Crimes.

[note 14] Based on NIBRS arrest estimates available from the FBI’s Crime Data Explorer website: https://cde.ucr.cjis.gov/ .

[note 15] Alexandra Thompson and Susannah N. Tapp, Criminal Victimization, 2022 (Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs, Bureau of Justice Statistics, September 2023), https://bjs.ojp.gov/document/cv22.pdf .