Justice System Position - Research Paper Example

However, with the passage of time the intensity of the crime committed by juvenile increased which lead to the shift in the focus of the justice system. The justice system shifted its focus from rehabilitation to punishment. This shift in focus has initiated the debate of what the focus of Juvenile Justice System should be. While many are of the opinion that this shift in focus is just, I believe the focus of juvenile justice system should be rehabilitation and not retribution. Many individuals and groups of society believe that the threat of harsher punishment would help in decreasing the rate of juvenile crime.

While it may be true if approached from one aspect but the other side of the coin indicates very different and adverse result of this approach. According to a study conducted by the North-eastern University in 1996 on juvenile recidivism, the treat of harsher sentences like that of adult has done little to decrease the juvenile crime rate. Reason for supporting rehabilitation as the focus of juvenile justice system is the belief that children being young still have the potential and ability to change.

Children are what the surrounding circumstances have shaped them to be. If treated with proper care, there is a very less chance that they will not change. Saving children is easy because they are young and not fully matured in their thinking. It is necessary to save these children so that they make a better part of the society in the future. Rehabilitation through its various approaches and programs has a better capability to save these children’s than punishment. Rehabilitation through its various programs like Youth Outreach Service (YOS) focuses on assessing mental health of the youth.

These programs aim to provide the youth with immediate assistance regarding the mental and emotional problems caused by the trauma youth faced thus saving helping to save the child. It is because of this focus on psychological improvement