The Future of the Juvenile Justice System, Essay Example

Unfortunately, the negative impact of the juvenile crime causes many issues that go above and beyond simple crime and punishment. The ever-lasting impact that juvenile criminal activity has on the criminals, their families and the drain that it causes on the criminal justice system depletes resources and drastically reduces the ability for the system to be productive. For this reason, many individuals are working hard to implement criminal prevention programs identifying at-risk youth in order to target areas where criminal activity can be prevented. While this is a strong effort and has shown signs of positive change, there is still a necessity for a criminal justice system for juveniles. The primary reason that such a system is still necessary is that prevention efforts cannot effectively prevent 100% of all criminal activity. Juveniles will still commit crimes and must still pay for their crimes, as is the standard punishment for criminals in our society. Therefore, a criminal justice system for juveniles is necessary.

Without such a system, juveniles would be tried, convicted and punished as adults, which means that adult murders, rapists and child abusers would be in the same environment as juvenile criminals. While this may appeal to those individuals seeking harsher punishment in the juvenile system, it proposes far more safety risks of all of the inmates than what is required. The goal of the justice system is to rehabilitate criminals so that they may one day re-enter society as functional beings. Combining juvenile and adult criminals would drastically hinder any type of rehabilitation that the juveniles may be able to experience in a less harsh, juvenile detainment facility.

Understanding the need for a juvenile justice system, there must be a comprehensive strategy for the juvenile justice system. This will enable the system to tackle many different problems at one time including prevention efforts, successful rehabilitation, ensuring safety and security, and continuing education for juveniles in detainment. These goals and projects are not to be accomplished through implementing a simple strategy or focusing on one sole strategic movement. Instead, the juvenile justice system must unite to adapt a comprehensive strategy that addresses each of these concerns and utilizes the available resources to provide the most productive environment for juvenile criminals to continue to grow, learn and succeed in re-entering society as functional beings.