Youth in the Adult Criminal Justice System

Since the world's first juvenile court was founded in Chicago, our legal system has recognised a separate mandate to rehabilitate youth with an approach that is different than adults. Today, all 50 states and the District of Columbia and the federal government have two distinct systems for dealing with adults and juveniles, and corrections systems kept pace by developing different systems for dealing with the youth. While the majority of youth arrested for criminal acts are prosecuted in state juvenile justice systems, a significant proportion of youth are handled by adult criminal justice agencies. This book examines the issues, impacts and options facing corrections when they manage youth in the adult system, with a focus on raising awareness of these issues, and finding the best ways to curb juvenile delinquency in correctional settings.