WEEK 2 MODULE

DELINQUENCY IN GENERAL
Delinquency refers to any action; course or conduct that deviates from acts approved
by the majority of people. It is a description of those acts that do not conform to the
accepted rules, norms and mores of the society (sociological definition) Delinquency,
therefore, is a general term for any misconduct or misbehavior that is tantamount to
felony or offense. It is, however distinct from crime in the sense that the former may be
in the form of violation of law, ordinance or rule but it is punishable only by a small
fine or short-term imprisonment or both. Legally speaking, delinquency means the
failure to perform an act required by law, or the non-performance of a duty or
obligation that is mandated by existing law or rule.

JUVENILE CRIME
Juvenile Crime, in law, term denoting various offences committed by children or
youths under the age of 18. Such acts are sometimes referred to as juvenile
delinquency. Children's offences typically include delinquent acts, which would be
considered crimes if committed by adults, and status offences, which are less serious
misbehavioral problems such as truancy and parental disobedience. Both are within
the jurisdiction of the juvenile court; more serious offences committed by minors may
be tried in criminal court and be subject to prison sentences. In law, a crime is an
illegal act committed by a person who has criminal intent. A long-standing
presumption held that, although a person of almost any age can commit a criminal
act, children under 14 years old were unlikely to have criminal intent. Many juvenile
courts have now discarded this so-called infancy defense and have found that
delinquent acts can be committed by children of any age.

JUVENILE DELINQUENCY
The term juvenile delinquency is used to describe a large number of
disapproved behaviors of children or youths. In this sense, almost anything that the
youth does which others do not like is called juvenile delinquency. However,
criminologist suggested the following factors of juvenile delinquency:

Juvenile delinquency includes the behavior specifically defined as delinquent

according to the various existing laws and ordinances concerning children or youth.
The definition of juvenile delinquency must take into account the social reality that
reflected through the media. Books, movies and television help people to define a
particular reality for them. If the media systematically portrays particular behavior as
delinquent, they often come to be accepted as real.
While almost all children engage in behavior that is in violation of juvenile codes and
laws, we believe that ultimately, juvenile delinquents refers to youths who have been
successfully defined as delinquents.
In a more specific view, acts of juvenile delinquency include violation of laws such as
those defined by juvenile codes and laws.

THE DELINQUENT PERSON

A delinquent person is one who repeatedly commits an act that is against the
norms or mores observed by the society. When a person habitually commits an act
that is not in accordance with the rules or policies of a community where he belongs,
he is considered a delinquent.

THE JUVENILE DELINQUENT

Juveniles are young people who are regarded as immature or one whose mental
as well as emotional faculties are not fully developed thus making them incapable of
taking full responsibility of their actions. In legal points, the term juvenile is a person
subject to juvenile court proceedings because of a statutorily defined event or
condition caused by or affecting that person and was alleged to have occurred while
his or her age was below the specified age limit.

BRIEF HISTORY OF JUVENILE DELINQUENCY

The harsh beginning - Children were viewed as non-persons until the 1700's.
They did not receive special treatment or recognition. Discipline then is what we now
call abuse.
There were some major assumptions about life before the 1700's. The first
assumption is that life was hard, and you had to be hard to survive. The people of that
time in history did not have the conveniences that we take for granted. For example,
the medical practices of that day were primitive in comparison to present-day
medicine. Marriages were more for convenience, rather than for child-bearing or
romance. The second assumption was that infant and child mortality were high. It did
not make sense to the parents in those days to create an emotional bond with
children. There was a strong chance that the children would not survive until
adulthood.

At the end of the 18th century, "The Enlightenment" appeared as a new cultural
transition. This period of history is sometimes known as the beginning of reason and
humanism. People began to see children as flowers, which needed nurturing in order
to bloom. It was the invention of childhood, love and nurturing instead of beatings to
stay in line. Children had finally begun to emerge as a distinct group. It started with
the upper-class, who were allowed to attend colleges and universities.
Since ancient times, enlightened legal systems have distinguished between juvenile
delinquents and adult criminals. Generally, the immature were not considered morally
responsible for their behavior. Under the Code Napoléon in France, for example,
limited responsibility was ascribed to children under the age of 16. Despite the
apparent humanity of some early statutes, however, the punishment of juvenile
offenders was often severe until the 19th century.
Prior to the 20th century, juvenile offenders were often treated as adults. The
first development contrary to this in the United Kingdom was the establishment of
Borstal training center in place of normal imprisonment, which was intended to build
up the offender's character. They were unsuccessful, and since the 1960s, policy has
been directed away from the detention of young offenders towards treatment in the
community, beginning with avoiding court altogether. The police are encouraged to
caution juveniles who admit an offence, unless they are persistent offenders.

When juvenile offenders are dealt with more formally, they are tried by a
dedicated juvenile court, having as little contact with the mainstream system as
possible. There is considerable emphasis on parental responsibility, and the parents
may be ordered to pay the juvenile's fine, or be liable to pay a sum of money if the
child is in trouble again.

If the courts need to punish juveniles, they can utilize community sentences.
Attendance centers orders, for example, require juveniles to attend during their leisure
hours at centers where they will be given a program of constructive activities.
Supervision orders put juveniles under the supervision of a social services department,
and may include compulsory activities. Those aged 15 and over may also be sentenced
to probation orders (supervision), community service orders (compulsory work under
supervision), or a combination of both.

If juveniles are to be detained, those aged 15 or over may be held in a young

offender institution for between 2 and 12 months. Younger offenders can only be
detained in the most serious of cases, and there are national units to deal with them.
All Offenders aged 10 to 13 can be detained only if convicted of manslaughter or
murder.
Perceived Causes of Delinquency

Many theories concerning the causes of juvenile crime focus either on the
individual or on society as the major contributing influence. Theories focusing on the
individual suggest that children engage in criminal behavior because they were not
sufficiently penalized for previous delinquent acts or that they have learned criminal
behavior through interaction with others. A person who becomes socially alienated
may be more inclined to commit a criminal act. Theories focusing on the role of society
in juvenile delinquency suggest that children commit crimes in response to their
failure to rise above their socio-economic status, or as a repudiation of middle-class
values.
Most theories of juvenile delinquency have focused on children from disadvantaged
families, ignoring the fact that children from affluent homes also commit crimes. The
latter may commit crimes because of the lack of adequate parental control, delays in
achieving adult status, or simply because they get enjoyment from it. All theories,
however, are tentative and are subject to criticism.

The family unit has also experienced changes within the past two or three
decades. More families consist of one-parent households or two working parents;
consequently, children are likely to have less supervision at home than was common
in the traditional family structure. This lack of parental supervision is thought to have
an influence on juvenile crime rates. Other identifiable causes of delinquent acts
include frustration or failure in school, the increased availability of drugs and alcohol,
and the growing incidence of child abuse and child neglect. All these conditions tend
to increase the probability of a child committing a criminal act, although a direct
causal relationship has not been established.

JUVENILE DELINQUENCY: 
 This is the lawbreaking by non-adult persons.
 It includes such crimes found in the penal code of the land, as well as some
offenses not in the list of the law such as truancy, or sexual acts, that are illegal
only when committed by juveniles.
 This definition varies from the interpretation of the laws enacted by legislative
and interpreted by judiciary, but generally the term commonly refers to
someone under eighteen years of age who committed crimes. Illegal acts
committed by juvenile delinquent are considered CRIME if committed by an
adult.
 An act committed by minor that violates the penal code of the government with
authority over the area in which the act occurred.
 a violations of law and ordinances a violations of juvenile court order an
association with criminal or immoral persons engaging in any calling,
occupation, or exhibition punishable by the law.

JUVENILE
 Youth or young person

DELINQUENCY
 Offense, fault, neglect or failure of duty. Such behaviors committed by a young
person as to bring him to the attention of the court or that go against social
norm.

JUVENILE DELINQUENCY
 Is an imprecise nebulous or indistinct legal and social label for a wide variety of
law and norm violating behaviors.

JUVENILE DELINQUENT
 One who is incorrigible, ungovernable or habitually disobedient and beyond
control of his parents, guardian, custodian.
 One who is habitually truant; habitually uses obscene or profane language, one
who willfully injure or endanger the morals or health of others or himself; one
who associates with any immoral or vicious person.

DEVIANCE
  A behavior that departs from the social norm.

DEVIANT BEHAVIOR
 It exists in the violation of norms which are sufficient to exceed the general
tolerance limit of society.

SOCIAL NORM
 Is a set of standard behavior of the society.

YOUTHFUL OFFENDER
 Is a child, minor or youth including one who is emancipated in accordance with
law, and is over nine years but under eighteen years of age at the time of the
commission of the offense.

PARENS PATRIAE
 Is the power of the state to act in behalf of the child and provide care and
protection equivalent to that of a parent?

STATUS OFFENSE
 An act that is declared as an offense, but only when committed status offenses.

STATUS OFFENDER
 A juvenile who has been adjudicated by a court as having committed status
offenses.

EMANCIPATION
 A relinquishment of the care, custody and earnings of a minor child and the
renunciation of parental duties.

ANOMIE
 Is a condition produced by normlessness. This is because of rapidly shifting
moral values, a person then has few guides to what is socially acceptable
behavior.

INHERITANCE
 Is the transmission of physical characteristics mental traits, tendency to
disease, from parents to offspring in genetics, the tendency manifested by an
organism to develop in the likeness of a progenitor due to the transmission of
genes in the productive process.
HEREDITY
 A biological endowment or gift of nature.

EXAMPLE OF JUVENILE DELINQUENCY: 

 Frequent in any taverns or uses alcohol
 Wandering in the streets especially at night time
 Grows up in idleness or in crimes
 Entering or visiting house of ill refute
 Habitually truants
 Disobedient or refuses to obey reasonable and proper orders of parents,
guardians and custodians
 Engages in incorrigibility or ungovernability
 Absenting oneself from home without permission
 Persists in violating rules and regulations of the school  
 Endangers welfare, morals and/or health of self or others
 Uses vie, obscene or vulgar languages in the house and in the public places 16.
Smoke cigarettes
 Engaging in dissolutes or immoral life or conduct
 Wandering elsewhere and everywhere
 Jumps in a train, trucks and trailer without permission
 Loitering and sleeping in the sidewalks and alleys
 Begging and receiving alms in the street

CATEGORIES OF JUVENILE DELINQUENTS:

1. Environmental Delinquents: These delinquents are considered occasional law
breakers. Delinquents under this category are considered new in their activity
that had just tasted the pleasure fruit of being delinquent. This delinquent can
be easily led and corrected.
2. Emotionally Maladjusted Delinquents: These delinquents are chronic
lawbreakers who violate the laws, a habit which this type cannot be avoided or
escaped. They are regarded also as habitual delinquents that correcting them is
a pressing one.
3. Psychiatric Delinquents: These are delinquents suffering from emotional
disturbances brought about by his or her environment. It may result to mental
illness if not given care and attention.

CHARACTERISTICS OF JUVENILE DELINQUENCY IN

DIFFERENT VIEWPOINTS:
1. PARENTAL VIEW Parents may define disruptive and delinquent behavior as
disobedience, fighting with siblings, destroying or damaging property, stealing
money from family members or threatening parents with violence.
2. EDUCATIONAL VIEW School staff members often regard delinquent behavior
as that which interrupts or disturbs classroom learning, violates the school
code of conduct and sometimes threaten the safety of faculty and students.
MENTAL HEALTH VIEW Mental health professionals consider delinquency to
include a wide range of disruptive behaviors that may involve toward others or
animals, destruction to property, deceitfulness, theft and violations of curfew
and school attendance.

3. The Legal System View: 

Almost all states in the world consider persons under the age of 18 to be
juveniles. However when children under this age commit serious crimes, they
may be prosecuted as adults. Legally, there are two (2) categories of offenses
that may be committed by Juvenile Delinquents, they are: STATUS OFFENSES
DELINQUENCY OFFENSES