Evaluating the Purpose and Effectiveness of Juvenile Probation free essay sample

Evaluating the Purpose and Effectiveness of Juvenile Probation Matthew Wilson Juvenile Justice 113 06/13/2011 The effectiveness of juvenile today can be categorized into several things like with the specific programs that are offered to juvenile offenders and the different level of crime that they commit from a simple misdemeanor to a severe felony. This essay is going to talk about the different types of probation programs, the purpose of juvenile probation, and if they are effective or not. Although, I am going to only list a few today there are more out there that I am not going to talk about today. According to Georgia Courts (USlegal. com, 2011) the purpose of juvenile probation is to give a form of a sentencing to young juveniles so they do not have to leave their own community. However, the courts can put certain stipulations on the juvenile to where they may have a curfew, where they have to report to their probation officer on a certain day in the month, attend classes on a regular basis, and most importantly staying out of any kind of trouble. We will write a custom essay sample on Evaluating the Purpose and Effectiveness of Juvenile Probation or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page In the first article that I read from journal of Juvenile Probation System on the Eve of the new Millennium for Federal Courts (Corbett J. P. 1999) is that it talks about the three main types of juvenile probation. The first which would be dealing with the traditional approach to probation. Traditional probation deals with the simple way to handle probation these cases are usually simple offenses committed by the juvenile. Cases like this range from a simple underage drinking charge to a small gang affiliation charge. The first step in this process would be that the courts would assign a probation officer to them and their certain case. The courts can set how many times a month the youth offender has to see his or her probation officer. They can also set what types of restrictions that the youth will have to abide to or else he or she may have to have other penalties that again the court sets will set for them. In these cases restrictions may but do not all ways include punishments like curfews, urine drug tests, or community service. If the youth offender has a more serious charge against them they may face the second type of probation intensive supervision probation. Intensive supervision probation was intended for the more serious offender that would provide an alternative to being incarcerated, but still olding the youth responsible for his actions by putting him or her on high supervision all the time. This probation type is for the offenders who commit more serious offenses like armed robbery or murder of more than one person. This makes the youth offender have to attend more meetings with their probation officer. Instead of once a month meeting he or she might have to meet with their probation once a week. Al ong with meeting their officer more the courts set tougher guidelines that the youth will have to follow like not being able to leave home outside of school. The third and final probation that is effective in today’s society would be the method of Juvenile Boot Camps the high risk violent offenders. Juvenile Boot Camps are intended for the worst offenders that commit violent crimes like again murder. Juvenile boot camps emphasize strong discipline, modeled on military programs, and a strict physical conditioning regimen. The typical program is aimed at non-violent offenders, and involves a 3-month commitment followed by after-care (Peterson, 1996). Boot camps teach the offender that he or she is there for one reason and that they are not there by choice. The camps teach them that there is a life outside of crime. Also, it teaches the young juvenile order and discipline in life. When the offender returns back to society it is the hope that they will continue to do the right things in life. This is not quit an effective way for probation since it is expensive to house the offender. Another reason why this way is not an effective way in the probation system is since after the juvenile returns back to society the boot camp has now control of who the juvenile hangs out with. They may end up hanging out with the same crowd that they did before. In the second journal that I read Evaluating Practice involved the study of two types of variables the independent variable and dependent variable on why and why the juvenile probation is and is not effective. The first thing that this journal brings up is the independent variable. â€Å"The independent variable in this study was the use of single-case design as a factor affecting treatment outcome. The experimental group received psychosocial intervention and evaluation, by single-case design, and the control group received psychosocial intervention only. † (Slonim-Nevo, V. , Anson, Y. 1998). The dependent variables goes a little more in death with several variables like, self-esteem, relations with pees, mother and father along with juvenile interactions, anger, and level of functioning in recent months. They all tie in one way or another. This tells the courts if the juvenile is able to be on probation or not. When I compare the two journals they both pretty much reach the same conclusion that the probation system is effective,. The ways that they are the same is that they both deal with ways that a juvenile can face and what they could go into if the court ordered it. They ways that they are different is the first journal talks about the different types of juvenile probation that a youth can face if the court ordered it. The second journal talks about the independent and dependent variables of why each certain role can play either a negative positive outcome in the way the juvenile acts in life and where they are places for probation. References Juvenile Probation Law and Legal Defenition. (nd). Retrieved June 13, 2011, from http://definitions. uslegal. com/j/juvenile-probation/ Juvenile Courts. (nd). Retrieved June 13, 2011, from http://www. eorgiacourts. org/index. php? option=com_contentview=articleid=169Itemid=0http://www. georgiacourts. org/index. php? option=com_contentview=articleid=169Itemid=0 Slonim-Nevo, V. , Anson, Y. (1998). Evaluating practice: Does it improve treatment outcome?. Social Work Research, 22(2), 66. Retrieved from EBSCOhost. Corbett, J. P. (1999). Juvenile Probation on the Eve of the Next Millennium. Federal Probation, 6 3(2), 78. Retrieved from EBSCOhost. Merriam Webster Definition Probation. (nd). Retrieved June 13, 2011, from merriam-webster. com