Essay On Youth Crime

Youth crime in society is unfortunately misunderstood – thus, youth are frequently disproportionately represented, which has lead to the belief that youth crime is steadily rising. Minaker & Hogeveen (2009), acknowledge that as a whole, youth crime has been decreasing, while incarceration for minor offences is not. To illustrate, Ashley Smith was a young girl who died from self-inflicted strangulation while under suicide watch in a federal prison. While on probation at 15-years-old, Ashley Smith threw apples at a postal worker where she was subsequently charged with a breach of probation (Richard et. al, 2008). Accordingly, Minaker & Hogeveen (2009), claim that violent activity peeks in females at a younger age that males, 14-15 for females

To illustrate, Minaker & Hogeveen (2009) explain that paternalism remains a dominant response to youth’s criminal behaviour while incarcerated, predominantly effecting girls progress in a carceral setting. As a result, the programing implanted in prisons, has been designed by males, for males and has proven to be ineffective amongst females (Minaker & Hogeveen 2009:136). Additionally, common nature of young women implies that they are three times are likely to suffer from depression and poor self esteem (Minaker & Hogeveen 2009:1129), combined with a lack of programing suitable for their needs, girls react poorly and engage in self-harming behaviours. Therefore, girls as a whole, present a larger danger to themselves than others (Minaker & Hogeveen

To illustrate, diverting cases out of the correctional system and taking a community based approach, such as restorative justice, would save a significant financial cost. For example, community based sentencing can cost between $600-$7,000 per year, while the cost of incarcerating a youth, for one year, is upwards of $126,000 (Minaker & Hogeveen, 2009:255). Thus, restorative justice deviates from a traditional forms of punishment. Restorative justice practices allow the crime committed to remains between the victim and offender – the focus shifts from disintegration to reintegration. In contrast, traditional uses of the correctional justice system allow the crime to be between the accused and the state, resulting in minimal benefits for the communities and victims (Minaker & Hogeveen, 2009:255). Minaker & Hogeveen (2009) illustrate that restorative justice moves away from the contradictory model of punishing an offender for their act and continuously supporting them to an approach that expands victim’s rights and produces