ABSTRACT
Studies also show there is a considerable amount of public support for rehabilitation rather than punishment for younger offenders in comparison to older offenders (Clarke, 2005). The public is inclined to believe that juveniles are more amenable to change, and, as a result, they are more likely to benefit from rehabilitation. In a recent Frontline interview, Bridgett Jones, former supervisor of the juvenile division of the Santa Clara Public Defender’s Office, summed up the importance of rehabilitation for youthful offenders:
Not everyone supports a separate system of justice for juveniles. Critics believe that it is a mistake to perpetuate a system in which juvenile offenders are viewed as less culpable than adult offenders. In fact, some argue that abolishing delinquency should be the first step in dismantling or significantly reducing the need for the juvenile system. For example, Jeffery Butts, a senior research associate of the Urban Institute, objects to the use of delinquency because, in his opinion, it implies that young offenders are not entirely responsible for their behavior, which presupposes they should be handled differently than adult criminals (Butts, 2000, para. 3). Like many others, he believes that juveniles who commit serious crimes should have their cases handled in criminal court or that criminal courts should have juvenile divisions. He reasons that if juveniles are violating criminal codes then, just like adults, they should be processed through criminal court.
