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The Juvenile Court: The Making of a Delinquent

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 July 2024

Michael H. Langley
Michael H. Langley*
Affiliation:
University of Tennessee at Chattanooga
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Extract

The rhetoric of the Juvenile Court Movement has emphasized the individualized, non-criminal handling of youths who commit delinquent acts. While the procedures for handling youth in the juvenile court were decriminalized (which basically means that constitutional guidelines applicable to criminal trials were disregarded), the alleged delinquent acts have remained, for the most part criminalized. That is, delinquent acts are defined by the law as basically criminal acts committed by youth. A partial exception to this perspective is the juvenile status offenses. For the most part these acts (truancy, curfew violation, ungovernable, etc.) are viewed as “pre-delinquent,” i.e., pre-criminal kinds of behavior.

Type
Research Article
Information
Law & Society Review , Volume 7 , Issue 2 , Winter 1972 , pp. 273 - 298
Copyright
Copyright © 1972 The Law and Society Association

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Footnotes

AUTHOR'S NOTE: The author extends a very sincere “Thank you” to his wife, Mary Anne Langley, for her many constructive comments on earlier drafts of this manuscript, and to Mrs. Virginia Long for her typing and retyping of this manuscript.

References

Cases

In re Gault, 387 U.S. 1 (1969).Google Scholar

References

DURKHEIM, Emile (1947) The Division of Labor in Society (translated by George Simpson). Glencoe, Illinois: Free Press.Google Scholar
ENNIS, Phillip (1967) “Crimes, Victims and the Police,” 4 Transaction 36–44.Google Scholar
LANGLEY, Michael, H. Ray, GRAVES, and (forthcoming), Betty NORRIS “The Juvenile Court and Individualized Treatment,” Crime and Delinquency.Google Scholar
LEMERT, Edwin (1970) “Juvenile Justice — Quest and Realities,” in Abraham S., BLUMBERG (ed.) The Scales of Justice. Chicago: Aldine Publishing Company.Google Scholar
MARTIN, John (1970) Toward a Political Definition of Juvenile Delinquency. Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office.Google Scholar
MATZA, David (1964) Delinquency and Drift. New York: Wiley and Sons.Google Scholar
PRESIDENT'S COMMISSION ON LAW ENFORCEMENT AND ADMINISTRATION OF JUSTICE (1967) Task Force Report: Juvenile Delinquency and Youth Crime. Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office.Google Scholar