Juvenile Justice Model

Of all the justice systems four ways to deal with youth crime I personally feel that the balanced and restorative justice model works the best of them all. The reason I feel that way is because I honestly feel this model is made to truly make a difference in the lives of the juveniles. The premise of this model is to give offender the opportunity to right their wrongs and redeem themselves in the eyes of not only their communities but, most importantly their own eyes. Also, this justice model aims to help the offender avoid future offenses. This approach revolves around the theory that considers crime and any act of wrongdoing to be an offense strictly against an individual or a community rather than a crime against that state. Therefore, I

feel this justice model is the best of the four.

Justice is important to the juvenile justice system because without it the juvenile justice systems purpose would be lost. The purpose of justice in the juvenile system is to foster positive youth outcomes that are fair and reasonable for the juvenile. Without justice for the victims and the juveniles the system would be obsolete since it lacks benefits and certain parameters that foster growth and improvement that would possibly lead to justice for victims and the chance for the juveniles to restructuring themselves. That’s why justice is so crucial in the juvenile justice system.

Allow me to give a specific case that better explains my opinion would be this.

For instance, A theater company in Lenox, Massachusetts, works with the courts to get juveniles who find themselves in violation of the law sentenced to perform works of Shakespeare onstage as an alternative to community service or juvenile detention. Juveniles sentenced to Shakespeare read the bard's works, take on the role of one or more of his characters, come up with costumes designs and sets, memorize their lines, rehearse and then work themselves up to act out their roles for an audience usually comprised of family, friends and even court personnel. Most juveniles reveal that they hate the idea of performing Shakespeare at first, but by the end of the six-week program, many say they've found new friends and a new sense of accomplishment as well as a new drive and direction in life. Much like I stated in my opinion about opportunities that juveniles should have available to restructure themselves rather than be incarcerated or charged without reflection or any attempt to better them or help them learn from their actions. Without justice in the juvenile justice system many opportunities such as this on that are out there may be taken away shortening the number of opportunities for minors to restructure themselves in contrast to facing

incarceration.

Even with the good the juvenile justice system is doing its still things it can do to improve.

For example, I have a friend that was placed on house arrest for some of the mischief he caused in the community that eventually led to him being charged. In cases like that I would propose that something along the lines of community service or some projects in the community to show his community that he is aware of the consequences of his actions and that he’s willing to help better and make positive change in his community as well. This is a step that shows that he’s attempting to reform himself but that he’s truly turned over a new leaf and that his past mischief is firmly behind him. This is one of the many possible steps that the juvenile justice system can take on the road to improve

itself.

Lastly, I think that the result of abolishing the juvenile justice system and having the adult courts deal with the juveniles would be truly devastating and do more harm than good. This firstly gets rid of systems in place such as the restorative system that are made with the sole purpose of providing an alternative to conventional incarceration and helping juveniles take accountability for their actions. Also, this puts adult courts in a tough spot due to the lack of proper training on how to deal with issues such as the ones that will be evident in a juvenile case. And finally, it would ultimately lead to a lack of connection between the juveniles and those communities or people that were possibly wronged at the hands of the juveniles due to it being made into a problem of the state rather than a problem against the communities or anyone in particular possibly contradicting the balanced and restorative justice model completely. That’s what I feel would be the effect of the abolishment of the juvenile justice system.