Crime Causation and Diversion Paper

Reading this paper it will discuss a few reasons to why juvenile delinquents behave the way that they do. This leads to the two diversion programs that are used in the state of Louisiana. This paper will discuss each program’s major goals, objectives, and core beliefs. A discussion about each program’s key participants as well as the different types of services each program offers. The paper will explain each program’s effective way at reducing juvenile crime. Lastly, the paper will end with a discussion about which program out of the two programs that work the best to reduce crimes committed by juveniles.

There are many reasons to why juvenile becomes delinquents and then there are some that do not have a reason. Usually it starts in the home. Parents are the first people that can teach their children right from wrong. However, if a child comes from a single parent home may cause them to misbehave. If the child is in a two parent home but there is no discipline or if the parents are ex-criminal can cause the child to misbehave as well.

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The area where a child lives can play a big role to why a child can become a delinquent as well.

For example if there is a lot of killing, low income living, and gang groups. Next it is the community, if there is nothing to offer a child they will most certainly turn into juvenile delinquents due to the fact that a child like activities and without the positive activities they see the negative activities as fun.

Basically there is no single cause for all delinquents and not all delinquents carry out crimes thought-out there life. However, with major of Delinquents there are risk such as birth trauma, child abuse and neglect, ineffective parental discipline, family disruptions, conduct disorder and hyperactivity in children, school failure, learning disabilities, negative peer influences, limited employment opportunities, inadequate housing, and residence in high-crime neighborhoods. These examples can cause a juvenile to act out negatively (Juvenile Justice Bulletin, 1998).

In the State of Louisiana there are different juvenile programs. There are two programs that are very nice to use. The First program is the Model Programs Guide which is one of the first programs Louisiana juvenile justice had used. From the time MPG started up to 2013 it has been modified and updated. According to OJJDP (2013), “The Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention’s (OJJDP’s) Model Programs Guide (MPG) contains information about evidence-based juvenile justice and youth prevention, intervention, and reentry programs. It is a resource for practitioners and communities about what works, what is promising, and what does not work in juvenile justice, delinquency prevention, and child protection and safety”.

Vision Statement

“The Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) envision a nation where our children are healthy, educated, and free from violence. If they come into contact with the juvenile justice system, the contact should be rare, fair, and beneficial to them (OJJDP, 1)”.

Mission Statement

“The Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) provide national leadership, coordination, and resources to prevent and respond to juvenile delinquency and victimization. OJJDP supports states and communities in their efforts to develop and implement effective and coordinated prevention and intervention programs and to improve the juvenile justice system so that it protects public safety, holds offenders accountable, and provides treatment and rehabilitative services tailored to the needs of juveniles and their families (OJJDP, 1)”. MPG is an easy-to-use, central, reliable, and credible resource program that helps support communities and policymakers in identifying programs that can make a difference in families and children’s lives.

The purpose of MPG is to support in practical decision making and program implementation by gathering information on specific juvenile justice-related programs and reviewing the existing evaluation research against standard criteria. The Programs that MPG provides are as followed: Child Protect; Health and Welfare; Children Exposed to Violence and Victimization; Delinquency Prevention; Detention; Confinement and Supervision, Juvenile Justice System and JJDPA; Juvenile and Family Courts; Law Enforcement; Populations; School; and Youth Offenders. Each Program has several individual programs that are related for each issue that a juvenile may have. The program address issues such as child victimization, substance abuse, youth violence, mental health and trauma, and gang activity.

In addition to the information provided by MPS there are additional resources that practitioners, policymakers, and communities can use to improve the effectiveness of interventions, enhance accountability, ensure public safety, and reduce recidivism (OJJDP, 2013). The next program that the state of Louisiana uses is the Blue Print program. This program specializes in the study and prevention of youth violence. Blueprint list is recommended by 72% of educational agencies. The program is very successful in preventing negative behavior and healthy youth development. Most school districts use “The Blueprints standard for certifying programs as "model" or "promising" is one of the highest in the field (CSPV, 1)”.

Mission Statement

“The Blueprints mission is to identify evidence-based prevention and intervention programs that are effective in reducing antisocial behavior and promoting a healthy course of youth development (CSPV, 1)”. The Blueprint programs focus the reconstruction of youth violent behavior. A few programs that blue print provides: Adolescent Coping with Depression, Athletes Training and Learning to Avoid Steroids (ATLAS), Behavioral Monitoring and Reinforcement Program, Big Brothers Big Sisters of America, Communities That Care, Functional Family Therapy (FFT), Guiding Good Choices, and New Beginnings (Intervention for children of divorce)(CSPV, 2013). There are more programs and they all deal with the reason to why juvenile would turn delinquent. Each program listed above touches the core issues of youths. The staff at blueprint does continuous research on their youth programs. “Blueprints' standards for certifying model and promising prevention programs are widely recognized as the most rigorous in use.

Program effectiveness is based upon an initial review by Blueprints staff and a final review and recommendation from a distinguished advisory board, comprised of experts in the field of youth development” (CSPV, 1). Other researchers certifies these programs as rigorous and effectiveness through evaluation. Both programs are good and they both provide services that are intended to help juvenile behavior and reduce juvenile crime. However, the Model Program Guide really does not stick out like the Blueprint Program does. Blueprint touches more on the core of the problem. MPG provides services that would help prevent juvenile crimes and it has been somewhat effective, Blueprint focus on behavior. What causes a juvenile to act out? Blueprint provides caring and reinforcement to a juveniles issue.

In conclusion, crimes are committed by juveniles on day-to-day basis and each juvenile has a different attitude towards the crime that was committed. Life situations occur for juveniles which can cause a short or long term effect. The juvenile diversion programs like the Model Programs Guide and the Blueprint provides different types of prevention programs which targets to prevent future crimes. Programs vary from state to state and they are not all the same, nor do they have the same effect on all juveniles. In, conclusive what is known is that all prevention programs invoice a certain time period of powerful control over offenders to prevent the offender from any future offenses.

Source
CSPV-Center for the Study and Prevention of Violence- (2013). Blueprint for Violence Prevention Program. Retrieved from http://www.colorado.edu/cspv/blueprints/. November 15, 2013. Juvenile Justice Bulletin (October 1998). Program of Research on the Causes and Correlates of Delinquency. Retrieved from http://www.ojjdp.gov/jjbulletin/9810_2/program.html. November 15, 2013. OJJDP-Officer of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (2013). Model Programs Guide. Retrieved from http://www.ojjdp.gov/mpg. November 16, 2013.