Youth Justice Warriors Fact Sheet

Youth Justice Warriors Fact Sheet: Police and Homeless Youths Name of Student Course Name of Professor University Date Youth Justice Warriors Fact Sheet: Police and Homeless Youths Understanding the Issue For homeless youth, risk factors that make them engage with the criminal justice system disproportionately seem to exist. They are easily targeted because they have pre-existing conditions so that they may be stopped, searched, or arrested by police forces (Reinhard, 2024). Due to this, these young people are found more often in the streets, public parks, and transit, thus increasing their contact with the public and police. This form of exposure exposes such a place to high scrutiny by the residents and owners of other establishments, which culminates in their complaint, which leads to police action, as noted by Reinhard in his 2024 publication. Moreover, through health and mental health problems, their situation becomes worse. Depression and mental illnesses also remain widespread among homeless youths, which makes them engage in behaviors likely to bring them in contact with the police. When it comes to social factors, substance abuse, which ranges from psychoactive substance use to opiates, predicts youths’ police interaction based on the criminalization of such behavior (Nilsson et al., 2020; Wachter et al., 2015). The experience of such a vast number of encounters with the police does not remain without consequences. Navigating the criminal justice system can result in heightened victimization, and overall skepticism of the police by homeless youth may prevent them from seeking any assistance when they are most vulnerable despite being at greater risk in this state (Quirouette et al., 2016). Also, this manner of handling youths’ cases confines them to a cycle of unemployment, lack of proper housing and education, limits their abilities to find jobs or be hired again, barred from accessing adequate housing, and, among other fundamentals of life and be locked up in and out of prison (Wachter et al., 2015). Key Factors High Risk of Police Contact While studying the level and frequency of police contacts, it has been established that homeless youth are in an even more vulnerable position as they experience frequent contact with police. These interactions are likely due to the research participants’ visible presence in the community, which provoked complaints from the community and the subsequent response of a readily accessible police force. Reinhard’s (2024) analysis also revealed that 93% of interactions between police and homeless people are citizen-police happenings against police initiatives. This figure also portrays society’s inclination to view homeless youth as an issue, which causes police intervention in their lives for behaviors that are not unlawful, like loitering, begging, or sleeping outdoors (Reinhard, 2024). Due to the nature and visibility of homelessness, they quickly face complaints from the public; hence, they are in contact with the criminal justice system often. Disproportionate Minority Contact Blacks and other people of color are more likely to be profiled, harassed, and arrested by the police, as this shows there is racism within the police. Ivanich and Warner (2019) also pointed out that, among homeless youths, the message racial minorities receive from the police is police scrutiny and legal action. However, the study also revealed that the above factors erode the effects of the black radicalization hypothesis, which stated that living on the street reduces racial differences as the officers remain focused only on the spectacle of the street in front of them rather than the color of the African American person. Thus, this work indicates that the experience of homelessness itself has widespread effects; at the same time, identifying the root causes of such vulnerabilities points to the systematic oppression affecting minorities among homeless youth (Ivanich & Warner, 2019). Crime Victimization Homelessness not only raises the odds of coming across police but also doubles the risks of turning into a victim of criminal activity. Gangs, as well as other violent people, often harass and attack homeless persons, particularly the youths, because they are easy targets and do not have stable shelters to protect themselves (Nilsson et al., 2020). The persistent risk of becoming a victim is another factor that makes their circumstances even more dire. If engaging in bind-forms at any time, the police may not differentiate the differences between victims and offenders in such themes. Thus, the increased susceptibility of homeless people to criminal offenses discussed in Nilsson et al. (2020) is an essential area that requires further development to ensure homeless people’s improved protection and support. Criminological Theories and Homeless Youth General Strain Theory (GST) Based on the General Strain Theory, it is possible to understand the role of stressors the homeless youth receive contribute to criminal activity. Wachter et al. (2015) describe the general stressors for homeless youth as the inability to have shelter, food and safety, violence and victimization, and abuse. GST argues that when people are not able to attain society's valued objectives legally, they end up engaging in criminal activities; thus, due to the stressful living conditions of youth homelessness, along with the lack of resources to address their needs and the consequent offers of a life of cri...