Juvenile Crime
Juvenile crime is any criminal offense committed by children, usually teenagers. The incidence of juvenile crime is increasingly becoming a problem for all societies, begging the questions, what is juvenile crime and what are we going to do about it? If juvenile crime consists of offenses committed by children, why should we be concerned? Firstly the term juvenile crime is misleading and gives no indication of the type of offense that is committed. Back in the days, juvenile crime consisted of a simple break in or car theft and in an extreme case robbery with assault. However, these days juvenile crime consists of murder, rape and many other heinous and unmentionable crimes. Juvenile crime is certainly committed by children but the gruesomeness of the acts leaves societies bewildered and at a loss as to what to do. The dilemma becomes apparent when one tries to reconcile the image of a child to certain types of juvenile crime.
Now that we are clear that juvenile crime happens, what can juvenile crime tell us about the state of a society? Studies show that the higher the incidences of juvenile crime, the more fragile a society. I believe the rising incidence of juvenile crime is a cry from our children for help. The types of juvenile crime being committed shows clearly that our values are being eroded and it is hard to tell right from wrong. Many offenders of juvenile crime see nothing wrong with what they have done. When a child living in extreme poverty steals food, is that juvenile crime? When a child who has been psychologically and physically abused over a period of time decides to act out my executing or harming his or her tormentor is that juvenile crime? When a child is constantly bombarded with images of the high life and sees no hope in getting there by honest means and becomes the pawn of an evil gang and is required to commit some sordid act of loyalty, is that juvenile crime?
As a society we have come to make legislation for and punish juvenile crime, but I do not believe that it is an issue that we are trying to tackle from a juvenile’s perspective. Their actions interrupt our world and because we are too busy to fix it, we call it juvenile crime to appease our conscience, punish it and leave the paying few to deal with it. However, as long as we take the ostrich head in the sand approach, the incidence of juvenile crime will keep on rising. Juvenile crime is not a term invented by children. I would go as far to say that juvenile crime is not a problem created by children. Adults are charged with the responsibility to bring them into a prepared and safe environment. Since children require a lot of guidance, the absence of guidance will certainly land them into juvenile crime, the prison we have created in order that we do not have to tackle head on, the glaring problems taking place in the children.
Children resort to juvenile crime for many reasons. Juvenile crime is the cry for attention, family and leadership. Juvenile crime may also be an indication of mental disorders within our children or just a general indication of their inability to cope in an increasingly stressful world.
Once juvenile crime was relegated to certain sets of people. You would see the incidences of juvenile crime and list out the possibilities of where and what circumstances came together to give them birth. However, juvenile crime has become like a pandemic transcending race, culture, sex and even religion.