Delinquency Deterrence Response

Delinquency Deterrence Response

I do not believe that the mere threat of punishment acts as a deterrent for a juvenile. If a juvenile is given an example of another individual that was punished for a negative act then this could act as a deterrent by proxy. General deterrence explains that a simple act of punishment is deterrence enough if the problem is handled early enough. General deterrence believes that giving these juveniles reason to believe that they do intend to punish a criminal act, and they have the means to do so, will be enough to deter the juvenile from committing a crime. An example of general deterrence would be hiring more police officers so that the juvenile knows that they are everywhere and will catch them. Specific deterrence rationalizes that if a child is punished severely for a particular act then it will deter them from committing further negative acts. An example of specific deterrence is putting a juvenile in a program. Situational crime prevention strategies are put into place with juveniles to try to convince them that the punishment way out ways the crime. Situational crime prevention is in place to let each juvenile know that the temporary gain from a crime is not worth the punishment that will follow. An example of situational crime prevention would be to embarrass a juvenile after they have committed a crime or threaten to do so before the crime has been committed.

I believe that general deterrence is the best method to use when dealing with juveniles. I feel this way because it let's the juvenile know, before they commit the crime, that they will get caught and they will be punished, therefore, preventing the act. The other two primarily deal with individual situations. A parent cannot stand over their child 24 hours a day to ensure that each negative act is reprimanded. If a child has a general fear of committing unlawful acts or violating moral values then the child is eventually able to become a functioning adult that is able to discern right from wrong and will act accordingly.