Report: Juvenile Delinquency

Juvenile Delinquency
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Juvenile Delinquency
In recent years, there has been academic and public interest in Australia’s criminality trends, with much attention being focused on the youth (Zimring et al., 2017). The problem of juvenile delinquents in the country has provoked varied responses from the media and government institutions. However, the common view has been that the government needs to improve rehabilitation programs in support of juvenile offenders. A juvenile is a person who has committed a crime but is under the legal age (Young et al., 2017).Still, the age under which one can be referred to as being criminally responsible varies internationally. In some cases, individuals above the age of 18 can be treated as juveniles. Moreover, the United Nations (UN) defines young persons as individuals between the age of 15 and 24 (Young et al., 2017).
Overall, it is important to note that the term ‘juvenile delinquent’ should be used with care (Young et al., 2017). If not well used, the term can potentially problematic. In some contexts, it can show a derogatory tone, which may have misleading and negative assumptions. This would explain why the UN has for several years used the phrase ‘children in conflict with the law’ to describe young people who have broken the law (Young et al., 2017). This paper aims at analyzing and discussing the different types of youth offenders in Australia and government efforts at addressing delinquency in these groups.
Delinquency encompasses a wide range of mannerisms (Cipriani, 2016). Just like in other countries, delinquency is subject to legislation in Australia. Also, the law on delinquent behavior can change over time. Acts such as theft and assault constitute criminal offenses. Yet, some acts such as sexual behavior and alcohol consumption are tolerated in different countries depending on culture and background. Some offenses are shared between various jurisdictions. But, they are enforced in different ways. For example, unlawful assembly is applied to young people in Singapore to prevent the formation of youth gangs. The law is enforced on young people meeting in groups of at least five people. The varying degrees to which juvenile delinquency is interpreted in different jurisdictions contribute to discontinuity in the comparison of juveniles to adult populations (Cipriani, 2016).
In Australia, the government and the public witnessed a dramatic increase in arrests among young people during the 1990s (Beatton et al., 2018). The same trend was observable in other developed countries such as the USA and England. As a result, these countries introduced harsh policy changes in their juvenile justice systems. In turn, the number of cases involving juvenile delinquents decreased by 20% by 2009. Between 2010 and 2014, the government of Australia recorded a 4% decrease in the number of juvenile delinquents. The number of criminal offenses committed in urban areas, especially in Victoria, increased by 75% (Beatton et al., 2018). This report has been consistent with other international surveys which have shown that young personsin urban and densely populated areasare more liable toengagement in criminal activity.
A majority of young offenders in Australia’s urban areas are in gangs (Malvaso et al., 2017a). This is a key feature around the world. Young people in the country’s urban areas join gangs that are defined by ethnic, geographical, or ideological views. Recent reports from Victoria indicate that the area has experienced a rise in gangs with radical views. The existence of youth gangs in such areas has been attributed to factors such as reduced child supervision, economic migration, loss of family members, and exposure to unrealistic lifestyle ideals by the media. Although the law is very clear on youth offenders, it has proven a difficult task to get rid of gangs in the country (Malvaso et al., 2017a). Most of the youth in gangs do not recognize authority. A majority of them stem from the category of children who did not get adequate supervision. These individuals can be hard to tame. Some of them have even committed offenses against their parents. They tend to view themselves as sole authorities. Most of the persons in this category end up dying at a very young age due to gang rivalries or clashes with local authorities.
Those who join gangs due to loss of family ties and economic migration tend to have a realistic view of life. This crop of individuals mainly makes up groups of drug traffickers, carjackers, and violent robbers (Malvaso et al., 2017a). These criminal offenses are common among the youth in Australia. In particular, drug trafficking tends to attract most of the youth due to its easy money. However, those who join drug trafficking gangs end up being exploited. The promise of making easy money fast enables leading gang members to acquire as many traffickers as possible. Once they become members of these gangs, it is hard to leave. Gangs are known to have rules that require their members to remain part of the group or face dire consequences. Those leading the gangs put in place these rules to create fear in the young members. Still, this does not often end up working. Once the young members of these gangs become exposed to its dangers, they begin seeking a way out. Although some of them are able to leave, in some cases, attempts at leaving often lead to death (Malvaso et al., 2017a).
There are those who are engaged in gangs due to the status it provides. Some of these individuals, especially the youth are deceived by the unrealistic lifestyles portrayed in the media (Malvaso et al., 2017a). In the modern-day world, films are made every year depicting the lives of criminal gangsters. The extravagance and benefits associated with being in a criminal gang tend to attract some of the youth. In densely populated areas such as Victoria, these young people are likely to join these gangs due to their increased presence in the area. Carjackers and violent robbers constitute the least number of juvenile delinquents in gangs. In these gangs, the leaders have also experienced criminals. They plan their activities and ensure that they loot as much as they can. Thus, the individuals in these gangs do not commit criminal acts on a regular basis. They tend to rely on other petty crimes and business fronts to sustain themselves (Malvaso et al., 2017a).
Nonetheless, carjacking and robbery with violence are also similar to drug trafficking in that they can be extremely dangerous. For instance, carjackers normally use weapons such as guns to scare their victims. When carjacking situations go wrong, they can often lead to the death of victims including the young offenders who are being exploited by experienced criminals.
The largest crop of young offenders falls under the category of petty thieves. Individuals in this category tend to engage in petty theft due to the lack of basic needs (Nunn, 2017). A majority of juvenile delinquents in this group also tend to lack adequate family ties. This means that they often have no one to turn to for help. Another majority of young offenders under this category are students who have dropped out of school. Those who have dropped out of school due to lack of tuition tend to find themselves in difficult situations at home. Most of these students have single parents. Some have parents who are simply not willing to take good care of their children. This leads such students to start finding ways of supporting themselves. At a young age, most of them cannot secure a job. As a result, they often end up having to steal to feed themselves. Also, some of these school dropouts end up joining gangs. Those who do not remain petty thieves for repeated durations (Nunn, 2017).
Aside from young offenders who engage in criminal activities, there are those who act in ways that are not criminal but constitute delinquen...