Examining the Type of Legal Representation and Its Influence on Disaggregated Dispositions in Juvenile Court

2021 ◽  
pp. 154120402110276
Author(s):  
Caitlin M. Brady ◽  
Jennifer H. Peck
Keyword(s):  
Juvenile Court ◽  
Alcohol Treatment ◽  
Public Defender ◽  
Legal Representation ◽  
Out Of Home Placement ◽  
Home Placement ◽  
Court Processing ◽  
Community Sanctions ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Drug And Alcohol

While prior studies of juvenile court outcomes have examined the impact of legal representation on out-of-home placement versus community sanctions, previous research has not fully explored the variation within sanctions that youth receive. The current study examines the influence of type of legal representation (public defender or private attorney) when predicting juvenile adjudications and dispositions. Using a sample of delinquent referrals from a Northeast state between 2009 and 2014, results showed that youth do receive different outcomes (e.g., probation, drug and alcohol treatment, accountability-oriented dispositions, etc.) based on the type of legal representation. The findings have important implications for juvenile court processing related to how courtroom actors impact case outcomes.

Expanding the Applicability of Sampson and Laub’s Theory of Inequality and Social Control: A Multilevel Examination

2019 ◽  
Vol 46 (6) ◽  
pp. 902-919 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jennifer H. Peck ◽  
Michael J. Leiber ◽  
Maude Beaudry-Cyr
Keyword(s):  
Social Control ◽  
Juvenile Court ◽  
Structural Factors ◽  
Ethnic Inequality ◽  
Linear Modeling ◽  
Related Factors ◽  
Community Factors ◽  
Court Processing ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Racial Ethnic

The present study uses Sampson and Laub’s theory of inequality and social control to examine whether underclass poverty and racial/ethnic inequality hold current relevancy over the court processing of juvenile offenders. Hierarchical generalized linear modeling was used to investigate the impact of community aspects, offender characteristics, and offense-related factors on juvenile court outcomes occurring at intake, adjudication, and judicial disposition. Findings indicate limited evidence for the anticipated relationships between underclass poverty and racial/ethnic inequality on court processing stages. The individual and combined impact of being Black or Hispanic, and/or charged with a drug offense, exerted stronger effects on juvenile justice decision-making compared with Sampson and Laub’s structural factors. Implications for addressing the federal Disproportionate Minority Contact (DMC) Mandate based on the findings are discussed, as well as the future empirical inquiry surrounding whether community factors interact with offender and offense characteristics to influence outcomes of youth referred to juvenile court.

The impact of childhood foster care and other out-of-home placement on homeless women and their children

1999 ◽  
Vol 23 (11) ◽  
pp. 1057-1068 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cheryl Zlotnick ◽  
Marjorie J Robertson ◽  
Marguerite A Wright
Keyword(s):  
Foster Care ◽  
Homeless Women ◽  
Out Of Home Placement ◽  
Home Placement ◽  
The Impact

Race and the Impact of Detention on Juvenile Justice Decision Making

2005 ◽  
Vol 51 (4) ◽  
pp. 470-497 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael J. Leiber ◽  
Kristan C. Fox
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Multivariate Analyses ◽  
Juvenile Court ◽  
African American Youth ◽  
Direct Interaction ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Court Processing ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Detention Facilities ◽  
Research And Policy

In recent years, the growing number of minority youth disproportionately confined in secure detention facilities has led to a search for a better understanding of this occurrence. Explanations vary but tend to center on either differential offending or selection bias. The present study examines the extent both may explain decision making by specifically assessing the effect of race on detention and the degree that race and detention influence further court processing in one juvenile court jurisdiction in the state of Iowa. Multivariate analyses using juvenile court data (1980 through 2000) show that although legal factors account for some of the decision making and minority over representation, so too does race. Evidence is presented that, through detention, race has direct, interaction, and indirect effects that often work to the disadvantage of African American youth relative to White youth. Implications for future research and policy are discussed.

Introduction to Special Issue: Misdemeanor Justice Project—A Focus on Criminal Justice System Responses to Lower Level Offenses

2018 ◽  
Vol 29 (6-7) ◽  
pp. 527-535 ◽  
Author(s):  
Preeti Chauhan ◽  
Jeremy Travis
Keyword(s):  
Criminal Justice ◽  
Criminal Justice System ◽  
Justice System ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Special Issue ◽  
Legal Representation ◽  
Pretrial Detention ◽  
Court Processing ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Scholarly Attention

To date, the enforcement of lower level offenses and the criminal justice system’s response to these enforcement actions has received little scholarly attention. To address this gap in scientific research, the Misdemeanor Justice Project (MJP) commissioned nine scholarly papers focused on criminal justice responses to lower level offenses. Each of the papers in this volume is guided by one of four overarching themes, including officer discretion; the impact of lower level enforcement on individuals, communities, and institutions; pretrial detention and diversion; and court processing and legal representation. As a collection, these papers serve as a launching pad for the development of a body of research in a critical and opaque area of our criminal justice system as well as highlight areas for future research.

“You Can't Run into a Burning Building without Getting Burned Yourself”: An Ecological Systems Perspective of Parents Choosing Out-of-Home Care for an Intercountry Adopted Child

2017 ◽  
Vol 98 (3) ◽  
pp. 169-177 ◽  
Author(s):  
JaeRan Kim
Keyword(s):  
Home Care ◽  
The United States ◽  
Ecological Systems ◽  
Adoptive Parents ◽  
Adopted Child ◽  
Systems Perspective ◽  
Out Of Home Care ◽  
Out Of Home Placement ◽  
Home Placement ◽  
The Impact

Increasingly, intercountry adopted children have special needs similar to children adopted from foster care in the United States. Out-of-home placement may be necessary when less restrictive services have not adequately addressed an adopted child's needs. The experiences of 19 adoptive parents who chose to place their intercountry adopted child in out-of-home care due to their child's disability were explored through qualitative interviews and family ecomaps. Themes emerging from interviews relate to adoptive parent definitions of adoption and disability, challenges identifying and accessing services, and the effects of placement on their family, within an ecological systems perspective. Findings show the need for service providers to better understand the impact of an intercountry adopted child's disability and preadoption history on family adjustment, as well as to support parents through the out-of-home placement process.

In Re Gault Revisited: A Cross-State Comparison of the Right to Counsel in Juvenile Court

1988 ◽  
Vol 34 (4) ◽  
pp. 393-424 ◽  
Author(s):  
Barry C. Feld
Keyword(s):  
Juvenile Court ◽  
Policy Implications ◽  
Independent Effect ◽  
Juvenile Courts ◽  
Status Offenders ◽  
Out Of Home Placement ◽  
The Right ◽  
Home Placement ◽  
Status Offenses ◽  
Legal Variables

This article uses data from six states to analyze the availability of and the effects of counsel on delinquency and status offenses cases in juvenile courts. In three of the states, nearly half or more of delinquent and status offenders did not have lawyers, including many youths who received out-of-home placement and secure confinement dispositions. In all the jurisdictions, each legal variable—seriousness of present offense, detention status, and prior referrals—that was associated with more severe dispositions was also associated with higher rates of representation. However, while legal variables enhance the probabilities of representation, the presence of an attorney appeared to exert an additional, independent effect on the severity of dispositions. The article then explores the policy implications of these findings.

scholarly journals Estimating the “Impact” of Out-of-Home Placement on Child Well-Being: Approaching the Problem of Selection Bias

2009 ◽  
Vol 80 (6) ◽  
pp. 1856-1876 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lawrence M. Berger ◽  
Sarah K. Bruch ◽  
Elizabeth I. Johnson ◽  
Sigrid James ◽  
David Rubin
Keyword(s):  
Selection Bias ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Out Of Home Placement ◽  
Home Placement ◽  
The Impact

Understanding the Subgroup Complexities of Transfer: The Impact of Juvenile Race and Gender on Waiver Decisions

2019 ◽  
Vol 18 (2) ◽  
pp. 135-155
Author(s):  
Sara L. Bryson ◽  
Jennifer H. Peck
Keyword(s):  
Juvenile Court ◽  
Race And Gender ◽  
Black Females ◽  
White Males ◽  
Joint Influence ◽  
Judicial Waiver ◽  
And Gender ◽  
The Individual ◽  
Court Processing ◽  
The Impact

While prior research has consistently found the presence of extralegal disparities in juvenile justice decision-making, less research has investigated the combined effects of a juvenile’s race and gender on the decision to transfer youth to adult court. The current study examines both the individual and joint influence of race and gender on transfer decisions of all judicial waiver-eligible youth in a Northeast state from 2004 to 2014. Results indicate that Black males had the highest likelihood of being judicially waived, followed by White males, then Black females. White females had the greatest chance of being retained in juvenile court. The findings have important implications for juvenile court processing by informing researchers, practitioners, and policyholders about potential reform efforts that target judicial waiver.

The impact of out-of-home placement characteristics with regard to suicidal risk among adult survivors of childhood abuse

2021 ◽  
pp. 251610322199277
Author(s):  
Camille Danner Touati ◽  
Raphaële Miljkovitch ◽  
Aino Sirparanta ◽  
Anne-Sophie Deborde
Keyword(s):  
Risk Factors ◽  
Home Care ◽  
Childhood Abuse ◽  
Suicidal Risk ◽  
Out Of Home Care ◽  
Biological Parents ◽  
Out Of Home Placement ◽  
Placement Disruptions ◽  
Home Placement ◽  
The Impact

Background: Childhood abuse is associated with increased lifetime suicidal risk (SR). Among victims of abuse, children in out-of-home care are also at risk. Out-of-home placement is aimed at stopping further exposure to maltreatment and at providing the necessary security for proper development. Research suggests that placement arrangements may impact children’s mental health outcomes. Objective: The study was aimed at examining (1) the direct effects of different placement characteristics (i.e. age at first placement, number of placements, placement disruptions, total time in care, contact with biological parents, contact with siblings, placement with siblings) on SR and (2) whether these characteristics moderate the link between maltreatment and SR. Participants: The sample consisted of 77 adults (52 women; 25 men; mean age: 26.6 years) who received out-of-home care during childhood. Method: Participants completed the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire and the Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview (for SR). Participants’ records were used to determine placement characteristics and maltreatment. Results: PLS-PM analyses suggest a significant role of risk (age at first placement, number of placements, placement disruptions, contact with biological parents) and protective factors (contact with siblings, foster home placement) on SR. Risk factors also moderate the link between maltreatment and SR. Conclusions: Interventions aimed at limiting risk factors during placement seem important to reduce SR.

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