Police Interactions with Juveniles
Introduction
Persons under the age of 18 years present a unique set of od problems to the police when it comes to the handling of offenses. There has been growing concern over juvenile offending which has resulted in an increase in the legislative actions directed towards justice for the juvenile. There is always tension and conflict when it comes to interactions between the police and youth due to the perception of over-policing in public spaces and under-policing when it comes to victimization. On the side of the police, there is perceived uncooperative behavior from the juvenile and a lack of respect portrayed through negative attitudes. The police, therefore, respond to juvenile offenders differently than they do with adults which is accompanied by a lot of discretion and personalized treatment for each juvenile. However, there is inconsistency in decision-making processes due to the varying nature of crimes committed by the youth which threaten the application of formal laws to specific cases.
Ways in which the police come into contact with the youth
Interaction between the youth and the police can either be initiated by the youth or by the police or as a result of both (Sanden, & Wentz, 2017). In the case where the interaction is initiated by the youth, an offense has been committed by a child that calls for the attention of the police such as starting a school fire. Police are either called into action by the parents of the troublesome youth or by the school administration where they make an assessment of the youth to make a decision on the action to take against the behavior. In the case of violence in school, it is not always that an arrest is made because some of the youth may be suffering from mental health problems or may be having issues at home that contribute to the violent behavior. In such an instance, the police, the parents, and the school administration sit together with the child offender to address the underlying issue.
On the other hand, an interaction initiated by the police occurs through police patrols in school, neighborhoods, and on the streets. Most of the interactions under this category are involuntary and could include simple acts such as stopping a youth driving down the streets. In many instances, the police stop young drivers for checks on driving licenses which results in ticketing, warning, or if found with no mistake, they are allowed to proceed. The police are highly involved in school and community-based programs that are aimed at preventing and diverting crime behavior. The police enrolled in these programs make regular contact with the students and the youths in the neighborhood to provide counseling and guidance on the need to be safe and avoid crime. In other cases, they work together with the youth to keep an eye on crime and report any unlawful behavior they observe in an attempt to prevent crime. In the majority of the cases, the police-youth contact occurs for young adults usually between the ages of 18 years and 24 years.
Contact as a result of victimization occurs through either of the youth-initiated or police-initiated contact. It is only through being a victim that the youth get into contact with the law enforcement agencies. One of the ways that one can be a victim is through child abuse, being violent in school and in the community or by practicing property theft. Other cases could include sexual assaults and being witnesses to domestic violence. Police on a daily bases encounter troubled and traumatized youths that have been exposed to violence and through special policing units, the youths are referred to an intervention program that provides counseling. If the troubled youth do not receive any form of mental therapy, they will most likely result in drug abuse which will, in the end, result in violent behaviors.
Circumstance the police Interact differently with the youth compared to adults
Police discretion is uniquely designed to deal with juvenile offenders where the personal history of the offender is given a deep consideration when making a decision on the action to take against the offender (Schulenberg, & Warren, 2009). Some of the factors that are given attention to may include the family structure, previous offenses, the education level of the youth, as well as whether the juvenile is employed or not. Youth from troubled families in terms of finances or domestic violence will receive a different reaction from the police compared to their peers from stable families. The police also look at the circumstances that led to the charge and may consider whether to make an arrest or not. The youth are known to have emotional imbalance as a stage of development, the police may take that into consideration when making a decision involving where a youth mocked by his or her peer resulting in a fight. There are exceptions that may lead to an arrest of the offender by the police. For example, a child offender may refuse to cooperate with the proceeding which sends signals to the police of potential danger to the school or the neighborhood hence resulting in an arrest. In the arrest of an adult, an arrest is made promptly without consideration of the personal history or circumstances that may have triggered the criminal behavior. An adult is considered to be rational enough to know what is lawful and unlawful and any form of violation of the law is worth an automatic arrest.
It’s important for the police to interact differently with the young. For example, issuing a warning before making an arrest psychologically helps the youth to avoid crime. Issuing a warning as a way of interaction with the juveniles entails detaining the young offenders, giving a stern warning and then letting the minor go. When the juvenile is arrested, he or she must admit to being guilty and their guardian has to sign a waiver of their legal rights for the juvenile to be released. It is during the detaining that the police offer counseling to the juveniles against crimes and their consequences. The interaction is meant to rectify the behavior of young offenders without victimization. The young offender is then released after a promise of staying away from crime.
How contact with the police impact the youth
Young people feel that the police intrude too much into their activities more than they do with the adults hence resulting in a negative perception. As a result, young people tend to draw the attention of the police by engaging in delinquent and antisocial behaviors such as street fights or breaking into people’s property (Sanden, & Wentz, 2017). Others tend to spend more time in open public spaces where they know the police will notice them and engage in illegal activities such as drug abuse just to draw the attention of the police. On the side of the police, the increased supervision of the young people is as a result of the perception that young people are disrespectful not only to the police but also to the law. Black neighborhoods receive the heaviest police patrol compared to neighborhoods with youth from other races. Young black people feel that the police intrude too much into their privacy and consider it to be a racial injustice (Ericson, & Eckberg, 2016). On the other hand, actively engaging the youth in the policing programs has resulted in self-discipline among the youth. Through engaging the youth in crime prevention talks and activities in schools and in their neighborhoods, the youths feel more responsible for their behaviors and will be more self-assured and also take up leadership roles. Young people that show respect to the police have most likely not encountered any negative experience with them which can be rooted in having cooperative parents.
Conclusion
When troublesome youth violate criminal statutes, the police use a different procedure when handling the case than they would, when handling an adult with a similar offense. There are a variety of ways that the police use to interact with the young suspects such as issuing of warning, holding the minor until the guardian is present, and by referring the troublesome youth to court. In case of a troublesome youth, the police have a duty to file a written report since it can be useful in a juvenile court or also within law enforcement agencies. In the case where a juvenile who had been released is caught with another offense, their cases accumulate under the counseled and released alternative. When a child offender is detained, a file citation is made by the police. The written report is taken to probation officers of the juvenile court or to the district attorney of the local region. During this period, the child is no longer under the watch of the police but under the watch of the juvenile court and the detention center.
References
Ericson, R. D., & Eckberg, D. A. (2016). Racial disparity in juvenile diversion: The impact of focal concerns and organizational coupling. Race and justice, 6(1), 35-56.
Sanden, M., & Wentz, E. (2017). Kids and Cops: Juveniles’ Perceptions of the Police and Police Services. Journal of Contemporary Criminal Justice, 33(4), 411-430.
Schulenberg, J. L., & Warren, D. (2009). Police discretion with apprehended youth: Assessing the impact of juvenile specialization. Police Practice and Research: An International Journal, 10(1), 3-16.
