Reduction of Juvenile Delinquency in the United States
Terry Gatlin
AIU Online

Abstract In the United States, juveniles involved with the law are treated differently from adults. However, this has not always been the case. In the earlier times, children were thrown into jails with adults. Long prison terms and corporal punishment were common. Some children were even sentenced to death for their crimes.

Juvenile Delinquency in America In the United States today Juvenile Delinquency is getting way out of hand, when it comes to harsh crimes being committed by our youth. Today the majority of the states have set an age limit in which determines whether the person who is accused of a serious/non serious crime is treated as an adult or a juvenile. However, most states in the U.S. consider those who are under the age of 18 as juveniles. But some states have set their limits to 16 or 17years of age. Consequently, most of the states if a juvenile is charged with a serious crime, such as murder etc. that child can be sent to a criminal court and could be tried as an adult. The public appears much more aware of juvenile crime today than in the past; this is due in part to more thorough reporting techniques and greater emphasis on publicizing delinquent acts in the media. Official U.S. crime reports in the 1980s showed that about one-fifth of all persons arrested for crimes are under 18 years of age. In the 1970s, juvenile arrests increased in almost every serious crime category, and female juvenile crime more than doubled. During the most recent five year period studied, juvenile arrests decreased slightly each year. Unofficial report, however, suggest that a higher percentage of juveniles are involved in minor criminal behavior; grossly underreported common offenses include vandalism, shoplifting, underage