Chapter
IV. WHAT ARE THE ISSUES, IMPACTS AND OPTIONS FACING PUBLIC SAFETY SYSTEMS WHEN YOUTH ARE CONVICTED, AND COMMITTED TO THE ADULT SYSTEM?
V. WHAT ARE THE ISSUES, IMPACTS AND OPTIONS FACING PUBLIC SAFETY SYSTEMS WHEN YOUTH WHO CONVICTED IN ADULT COURT ARE ON PROBATION OR PAROLE?
Community Supervision – Corrections’ Stepchild?
Options for Corrections Systems, and Federal, State and Local Policymakers
APPENDIX I: SUMMARY OF POLICY RECOMMENDATIONS
APPENDIX II: ATTENDEES AND CONTRIBUTORS
Chapter 2 TRYING JUVENILES AS ADULTS: AN ANALYSIS OF STATE TRANSFER LAWS AND REPORTING
ALL STATES SET BOUNDARIES WHERE CHILDHOOD ENDS AND ADULT CRIMINAL RESPONSIBILITY BEGINS
Transfer Laws Alter the Usual Jurisdictional Age Boundaries for Exceptional Cases
Most States Have Multiple Transfer Mechanisms
Nearly All States Give Courts Discretion to Waive Jurisdiction Over Individual Cases
In Presumptive Waiver Cases, the Burden of Proof Shifts to the Juvenile
State Laws May Require Juvenile Court Judges to Waive Jurisdiction in Certain Cases
Nonjudicial Transfer Cases Bypass Juvenile Courts Altogether
Prosecutors’ Discretion to Opt for Criminal Handling Is Often Unfettered
Statutory Exclusion Laws Restrict Juvenile Courts’ Delinquency Jurisdiction
In Most States, Criminal Prosecution Renders a Juvenile an “Adult” Forever
Many States Give Courts Special Flexibility in Handling Youth Subject to Transfer
STATE TRANSFER LAWS CHANGED RADICALLY IN THE CLOSING DECADES OF THE 20TH CENTURY
Before 1970, Transfer in Most States Was Court-Ordered on a Case-bycase Basis
States Adopted New Transfer Mechanisms in the 1970s and 1980s
The Surge in Youth Violence That Peaked in 1994 Helped Shape Current Transfer Laws
In Recent Years, Transfer Laws Have Changed Little
FOR EVERY 1,000 PETITIONED DELINQUENCY CASES, ABOUT 9 ARE JUDICIALLY WAIVED TO CRIMINAL COURT
Juvenile Court Data Provide a Detailed Picture of Waiver in the U.S.
The Use of Judicial Waiver Has Declined Steeply Since 1994
NATIONAL INFORMATION ON JUVENILE CASES FILED DIRECTLY IN CRIMINAL COURT IS FRAGMENTARY
No National Data Set Tracks Cases That Bypass Juvenile Courts
BJS Research Provides Glimpses of Transfer Case Characteristics
Most Prosecutors’ Offices Report Trying Juveniles as Adults
MOST STATES DO NOT TRACK AND ACCOUNT FOR ALL OF THEIR JUVENILE TRANSFER CASES
The Transfer Data Project Documented State Transfer Reporting Practices
Only 13 States Publicly Report All Transfers
States Are More Likely to Track Judicial Waiver Cases Than Other Kinds of Transfers
THERE ARE WIDE VARIATIONS IN THE WAYS STATES DOCUMENT JUVENILE TRANSFERS
Only a Few States Report Significant Details About Transfer Cases
Available Data Show Dramatic Differences in States’ Transfer Rates
Detailed Transfer Reporting in Some States Makes Indepth Comparison Possible
NEARLY 14,000 TRANSFERS CAN BE ACCOUNTED FOR IN 2007—BUT MOST STATES ARE MISSING FROM THAT TOTAL
The Size of the Gaps in Available Transfer Data Can Be Broadly Estimated
States with Extremely Narrow Nonjudicial Transfer Laws
States with Extremely Broad Nonjudicial Transfer Laws
JURISDICTIONAL AGE LAWS MAY “TRANSFER” AS MANY AS 175,000 ADDITIONAL YOUTH TO CRIMINAL COURT
In13 States, Youth Become Criminally Responsible Before Their 18th Birthdays
A Total Of 2.2 Million Youth Younger Than 18 Are Subject to Routine Criminal Processing
JUVENILES IN MOST STATES CAN BE JAILED WHILE AWAITING TRIAL IN CRIMINAL COURT
Contact with Adult Inmates Is Sometimes But Not Always Restricted
A 2009 Survey Found That More Than 7,000 Youth Who Were Younger Than 18 Were in Jails
CONVICTED JUVENILES DO NOT ALWAYS RECEIVE HARSHER SANCTIONS IN THE ADULT SYSTEM
Sentencing and Correctional Handling of Transferred Youth Vary From State to State
Convicted Youth May Sometimes Serve Part of Their Sentences in Juvenile Facilities
State Prisons, the Bulk of Them in the South, Held More Than 2,700 Juveniles in 2009
TRANSFER LAWS GENERALLY HAVE NOT BEEN SHOWN TO DETER CRIME
Some Research Suggests That Transfer May Increase Subsequent Offending
Chapter 3 JUVENILE TRANSFER LAWS: AN EFFECTIVE DETERRENT TO DELINQUENCY?
GENERAL AND SPECIFIC DETERRENCE
GENERAL DETERRENCE: DO TRANSFER LAWS PREVENT JUVENILE CRIME?
RECENT OJJDP-FUNDED STUDIES
Transferred Juveniles More Likely to Offend
Greater Likelihood of Rearrest
Transfer Found To Increase Recidivism
WHY DO JUVENILES TRIED AS ADULTS HAVE HIGHER RECIDIVISM RATES?
Implications for Policymakers and Practitioners