By Andrew McGrath, Alison Gerard, and Emma Colvin

The current study examines the factors underlying pathways from out-of-home care into the criminal justice system. Using a multi-method approach—specifically, court observations, file reviews, and qualitative interviews—we found evidence of how histories of trauma and situational factors relating to the care environment interact to increase criminalization. While many policy initiatives have been developed to address this criminalization, in all parts of our study we found little evidence these are having an impact on practice in relation to care-experienced children. Some innovations we observed in our United Kingdom case study offer potential solutions to address this serious and ongoing problem.

Trends & issues in crime and criminal justice no. 600. Canberra: Australian Institute of Criminology. 2020. 14p.

By Panu Poutvaara and Mikael Priks

This paper isolates the causal effect of policing on group violence, using unique panel data on self-reported crime by soccer and ice hockey hooligans. The problem of reverse causality from violence to policing is solved by two drastic reallocations of the Stockholm Supporter Police unit to other activities following the 9/11 terrorist attack in September 2001 and the Tsunami catastrophe in December 2004. Difference-in-difference analysis reveals that Stockholm-related hooligan violence increased dramatically during these periods.

Copenhagen: Centre for Economic and Business Research, Copenhagen Business School, 2007. 27p.

By John G. Horgan, Paul Gill, Noemie Bouhana, James Silver and Emily Corner

Lone actor terrorists (sometimes referred to as ‘lone wolves’) and mass murderers are more often than not assumed to be distinct, with little validity for comparison. Yet, both engage (or attempt to engage) in largely public and highly publicized acts of violence and often use similar weapons. - Using a series of bivariate and multivariate statistical analyses, we compared demographic, psychological and offense-related behavioral variables across and between 71 lone actor terrorists and 115 solo mass murderers. - Results indicate there is little to distinguish these offender types in terms of their socio-demographic profiles. However, their behaviors significantly differ with regards to (a) the degree to which they interact with co-conspirators (b) their antecedent event behaviors and (c) the degree to which they leak information prior to the attack.

Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Justice, 2016. 122p.

By the Fines and Fees Justice Center (FFJC)

Every young person who comes into contact with Florida’s courts — regardless of guilt or innocence — is saddled with fees. Florida law authorizes 31 different court fees, costs and surcharges to be imposed on youth and their families. Together, these fees are quietly leading our youth, and their families, down a path of inescapable debt and poverty.

This report outlines the catastrophic consequences of juvenile fee debt for Florida’s children, families, and economy including: increased poverty, increased recidivism, and the exacerbation of racial disparities in the justice system. It also shows how the accumulation of fee debt is particularly damaging for Black youth and youth in the child welfare system.

Using county-level and statewide data, the report highlights the futility of both government, and private collection efforts, arguing that the costs of fee assessment and collection far outweigh the meager revenue received from such efforts.

Philadelphia: Fines and Fees Justice Center, 2022. 23p.

By Karen U. Lindell and Katrina L. Goodjoint

Since the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Roper v. Simmons banning the death penalty for young people under the age of 18, the principle that “kids are different” has come to permeate the justice system’s approach to young people. The developmental differences between adolescents and adults are now codified in numerous state statutes, have been cited in countless court decisions, and are foundational concepts in juvenile defense. And, while there is much work still to be done, the shift toward a developmental approach to youth justice has contributed to dramatic reductions in youth incarceration rates over the last decade.1 Yet even the Supreme Court has acknowledged, “[t]he qualities that distinguish juveniles from adults do not disappear when an individual turns 18.”2 People do not transform from children into adults on their 18th birthdays; instead the transition to adulthood is gradual and highly individualized.

The report begins by describing the defining characteristics of emerging adulthood and laying out the case for reforming the justice system’s approach to emerging adults. The report then examines examples and lessons from around the country where reforms are underway, including raising the age of juvenile court jurisdiction, reforming criminal justice procedures and practices, and using support from systems outside of the justice field. Finally, the report presents an in-depth look at the legal provisions and programs impacting emerging adults in the six states of the Great Lakes region—Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, and Wisconsin. Our hope is that this report provides policymakers and advocates in each of those states, as well as elsewhere, greater tools to reshape justice for emerging adults in their jurisdictions.

Philadelphia, PA: Juvenile Law Center, 2020. 96p.

By Walter B. Miller

That original report dispelled the popular notion that gang violence was no longer a problem in this country. Based on findings from 26 U.S. cities and metropolitan counties, including interviews with over 450 representatives of police departments, public and private youth service agencies, courts, and other groups, the author found that, compared to youth gangs from previous eras, the gangs of the 1970's tended to be more violent, more likely to use guns, less formally organized, and more active within the public schools. The original research provided baseline national estimates of the numbers, locations, and criminal activities of juvenile and youth gangs, and conceptualized the law-violating youth group as a basic unit in the study of gangs and other forms of collective youth crime. The predictions made in the report have been borne out in the intervening years by empirical data: that absent a new commitment to gang control, the youth gang problem would worsen; that the gang situation in California represents the wave of the future for the rest of the U.S.; that social and economic conditions associated with gangs will not change in a direction that reduces gang crime; and that gun control efforts will be ineffective in decreasing the availability of weapons to youth. 3 charts, 33 tables, and 5 appendixes

Washington, DC: U.S. Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, 1982. 177p.

By J. Hodgkinson, et al.

Are ‘comprehensive’ interventions more effective at reducing gang related criminal activity and anti-social behaviour than usual service provision? The meta-analysis of nine studies found that, overall, the comprehensive interventions had a positive, but not statistically significant, effect in reducing crime outcomes compared to usual service provision (i.e. whatever was in place either in a comparison area or before the specific intervention).

None of the studies included in the review considered the cost-benefit of any of the interventions. This kind of information is important to facilitate a more informed decision when choosing between different strategies. Any advantage of comprehensive interventions over non-comprehensive interventions may, for example, come at a greater financial cost.

London: Institute of Education, University of London, 2009. 155p.

By Laura Dunbar

Youth gangs are not a new phenomenon in Canada. Theoretical and empirical research and evaluation efforts continue with the goal of better understanding and responding to this issue. Advances have been made in defining the nature of youth gangs and their activities, the motivations for joining, and the risk and protective factors that influence involvement in a gang lifestyle. While a precise measure of youth gang involvement and prevalence of their activities in Canada is not currently available, in the last number of years strides have been made in understanding affiliation among several key populations, namely Aboriginal youth, immigrant youth and young women. Greater insight into specific risk factors, pathways to involvement and desistance, and guidance for prevention and intervention efforts can assist in the future development of solutions to address youth gang involvement and gang-related activities in Canada. Public Safety Canada continues to support effective youth gang prevention and intervention strategies that are known to work based on empirical evidence and lessons learned from past implementation and evaluation experiences.

Ottawa: Public Safety Canada, 2017.30p.

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By Max G. Manwaring

The intent of this monograph is to identify some of the most salient characteristics of contemporary criminal street gangs (that is, the gang phenomenon or third generation gangs), and to explain the linkage to insurgency. As a corollary, Dr. Max G. Manwaring argues that gang-related crime, in conjunction with the instability it wreaks upon governments, is now a serious national security and sovereignty problem in important parts of the global community. Although differences between gangs and insurgents exist, in terms of original motives and modes of operation, this linkage infers that the gang phenomenon is a mutated form of urban insurgency. That is, these nonstate actors must eventually seize political power to guarantee the freedom of action and the commercial environment they want. The common denominator that can link gangs and insurgents is that some gangs’ and insurgents’ ultimate objective is to depose or control the governments of targeted countries. Thus, a new kind of war is brewing in the global security arena. It involves youthful gangs that make up for their lack of raw conventional power in two ways. First, they rely on their “street smarts,” and generally use coercion, corruption, and co-optation to achieve their ends. Second, more mature gangs (i.e., third generation gangs) also rely on loose alliances with organized criminals and drug traffickers to gain additional resources, expand geographical parameters, and attain larger market shares. This monograph contributes significantly to an understanding of the new enemies and the new kinds of threats characteristic of a world in which instability and irregular conflict are no longer on the margins of global politics. For those responsible for making and implementing national security policy in the United States and elsewhere in the world, the analysis of the new threats provided by the author is compelling.

Strategic Studies Institute . 2005. 53p.

Edited by Winifred L. Reed and Scott H. Decker

The projects reflect a diverse set of methodologies and interests. They present a representative selection of the National Institute of Justice’s (NIJ) collection of gang-related research. Chapter 1 discusses a decade of gang research and the findings of the NIJ gang portfolio. Each research project is summarized. Chapter 2 presents the evolution of street gangs and examines form and variation. Chapter 3 describes the risk factors, delinquency, and victimization risk for young women in street gangs. Chapter 4 focuses on youth gang homicides in the 1990's. Three issues of importance to the understanding of gang homicide -- measurement, trends, and correlates are examined. The National Evaluation of the Gang Resistance Education and Training (G.R.E.A.T.) Program is outlined in chapter 5. This program is classroom-based and consists of eight lessons designed to teach middle school students life skills that enable them to resist the pressures of gangs, drugs, and delinquency. Chapter 6 evaluates Nevada’s antigang legislation and gang prosecution units. Chapter 7, presents an evaluation of a task force approach to gangs. The task force, known as JUDGE (Jurisdictions Unified for Drug Gang Enforcement), did not clear up the question of whether specific gang enforcement yielded better results than did traditional forms of law enforcement. Chapter 8 describes an evaluation of gang prevention programs for female adolescents. It was found that gang membership showed as much variation for young women as it did for men. Chapter 9 focuses on reducing gang violence in Boston. Chapter 10 describes the development of a GIS-based regional gang incident tracking system. Recommendations for future directions in gang research include incorporating some of the insights of research literature outside the gang field; funding collaborative efforts; and considering the use of a dynamic problem-solving approach.

Washington, DC: U.S. National Institute of Justice, 2002. 320p.

By Irving Spergel

The review describes what is known about youth gangs in the United States; explains gang phenomena, primarily within social disorganization and poverty perspectives; and describes and assesses organized responses to the problem. The first part of the report contains six chapters on the "Nature of the Problem." The first chapter considers definitional issues and data sources, followed by five chapters that address the scope and seriousness of the gang problem, the group character of youth gangs, membership demographics, membership experience, and the social contexts of youth gang development. The second part of the report, "Response to the Problem," focuses on organized responses to the gang problem, with attention to existing and evolving strategies, policies, and programs of youth service, criminal justice, and community-based organizations, as well as Federal and State legislative initiatives. One chapter in this section discusses the historical roots and development of key antigang strategies, followed by a chapter that discusses social intervention strategies, with attention to evaluation. Other chapters consider police gang-suppression strategies and the approaches of prosecutors, defense attorneys, and judges in addressing the gang problem. Remaining chapters address current emerging probation, parole, and corrections strategies; the importance of social opportunities, especially improved education and employment opportunities for gang youth; and community mobilization to counter gangs. The final chapter summarizes key findings of the review and provides policy recommendations.

Chicago: National Youth Gang Suppression and Intervention Program School of Social Service Administration University of Chicago, 1991. 212p.

By Walter B. Miller

Many crime analysts in recent years have tended to overlook the problem of youth gang violence in our major cities. They shared the popular view that gangs were a problem of the 1950's but no longer. Now, in the first nationwide study ever undertaken of the nature and extent of gang violence, Walter B. Miller reports that gangs in many cases have continued to be a problem for the last 20 years and in other cases have changed in their patterns-such as Increased use of guns, less formalized organizational structure, and greater activity in the schools-previously considered "neutral turf." How could there have been such a misreading of the national situation? According to Miller, the problem lies in the lack of any systematic method for gathering the right information. Miller's study concentrated primarily on the eight largest U.S. cities. He fmds gang violence levels high in: New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, Detroit, Philadelphia and San Francisco. From available data, he estimates the youth gang population in these cities as ranging from 760 gangs and 28,500 members to 2,700 gangs and 81,500 members. Statistics kept by these cities show 525 gang-related murders in the three-year period from 1972 through 1974, or an equivalent of 25 percent of all juvenile homicides in the cities. Miller believes these figUres may "represent substantial undercounts" because of the different definitions in use in the cities for classifying gang-related homicides.

Washington, DC: U.S. National Institute for Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, 1975, 84p.

By Carla P. Davis

This book offers an ethnographic study of the lives of girls in the juvenile justice system. Based on rich, narrative accounts, the girls at the center of the study are viewed as confronted with the power of simultaneous race, class, and gender hierarchies. Through this framework, we see how the girls navigate this challenge by seeking status in their everyday lives: in their families; juvenile justice institutions; and neighborhood organizations, including gangs. Through analyzing the ways that the girls strive for higher social status, this book provokes debate about how policies and programs may be creatively rethought to incorporate this pursuit. Girls and Juvenile Justice offers a glimpse into the hearts, minds, and souls of adolescent girls. It will be of great interest for scholars of criminal justice, sociology, women’s studies, and social-psychology.

Cham, SWIT: Palgrave Macmillan, 2017. 195p.

By James Gilbert

The youth culture is on everyone's lips today, as pressures build to ban controversial song lyrics, reintroduce school prayer, and prohibit teenagers' access to contraceptives. It's not the first time Americans have been outraged over the seuction of the innocent.. When James Dean and Marlon Brando donned their motorcycle jackets and adopted alienated poses in Rebel Without a Cause, East of Eden, and The Wild One, in the 1950's, so did countless numbers of American teenagers. Or so it seemed to their parents. American teenagers were looking and acting like juvenile delinquents. By mid-decade, the nation had reached a pitch of near obsession with the harmful effects of film, radio, comic books, and television on American youth.

New York; Oxford; Oxford University Press, 1986 . 273p.

By Gary L. McDowell and Jinney S. Smith

This volume about juvenile delinquency in the United States and United Kingdom includes a foreword, nine chapters organized in three parts, and an afterword. Chapters 1 and 2 in Part I describe juvenile delinquency in both countries and the urgency of the current crisis. Chapters 3 to 6 in Part II deal with the two nations' juvenile justice systems, focusing on structural and ideological obstacles preventing reform. Presented in the final chapters in Part III are suggestions for reform in school, and juvenile justice settings that recognize the importance of character in causing delinquency.

Houndmills, Basingstoke, UK: London: Macmillan; New York: St. Martin's Press, 1999. 209p.

By Janice Joseph

Over the past decade, a growing body of research has delineated the nature and extent of delinquency, as well as the role of the juvenile justice system. Despite such research, the causes and consequences of delinquency and the role of the justice system remain poorly understood, particularly in regard to minority groups. This book is intended to meet a two-fold need: to extend research into the area of delinquency generally and to further research into the sociology of Black youths. The author explores critical issues such as the rates of delinquency among Black youths, explanations of delinquency, and the juvenile justice system's treatment of Black youths, as well as the policy implications for designing culturally sensitive and effective delinquency treatment and prevention programs. Joseph's work will be of interest to scholars in sociology/criminology, criminal justice, and Black studies.

Westport, CT: Praeger, 1995. 225p.

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By George E. Worthington and Ruth Topping.

A Study of the Procedure in Chicago, Boston, Philadelphia and New York. Many persons interested in problems of social hygiene have felt that in the courts dealing with sex offenders serious administrative inequalities often operate against women delinquents. Some learning of the provision for trial by jury of prostitutes in Chicago, believe this to be an important safeguard against sex discriminations. Indeed, at various times it has been publicly proposed that an effort be made in New York City to secure legislation to permit trial by jury in all classes of sex offenses. The American Social Hygiene Association and the Bureau of Social Hygiene have been repeatedly appealed to for their views on this and other points connected with the courts dealing with sex delinquents. They finally decided to undertake jointly a study of the Morals Court of Chicago, with no preconceived findings to be reached and no propaganda to spread. The American Social Hygiene Association and the Bureau of Social Hygiene.

New York: Frederick H. Hitchcock. 1921, 1925. 474p.

By Mabel Ruth Fernald, Mary Holmes Stevens Hayes, and Almena Dawley.

“The system of penal institutions of any state and the planned of administration of each given institution are determined in part at least by certain conceptions regarding the persons who are handled. These conceptions may be vague and unformulated they may be definite and dogmatically propounded. In either case they form one important element of the determination procedure and become of practical importance The acceptance this point view has become almost universal among those who interest themselves in modern penology from either theoretical or more practical aspects.”

NY Century (1920) 556 pages.

By Arthur Macdonald.

Including stigmata of degeneration being a hearing on the bill (h. R. 16733) to establish a laboratory for the study of the criminal, pauper, and defective classes. Before A Sub-Judiciary Committee Of The United States House Of Representatives.”To find whether or not there are any physical or mental characteristics that distinguish criminal children from other children. Such knowledge would make it possible to protect children in advance and lessen the chances of contamination.”

Harrow and Heston Classic Reprint. (1908) 337 pages.

By Ruth Smiley True.

(Other Titles: The Neglected Girl). “The study of juvenile delinquency, Boyhood and Lawlessness, shows clearly the need of special intimate knowledge of social phenomena if their underlying causes are to be understood. It describes the inadequacies of the present system: the innumerable arrests for petty offenses or for playing in the streets, and the failure of the police to bring the ringleaders into court. All this seems so unreasonable to the neighborhood and has so often aroused its antagonism that the influence of the Children's Court is seriously undermined. In fact, the fathers and mothers of its charges look upon it only as a hostile authority in league with the police, while its real purpose is entirely hidden from them. The evidence is clear, too, that both parents and community have failed to understand and provide for the most elementary physical needs of the boys. The same tragic lack of opportunity and care characterizes the lives of the girls. Ruth S. True's portrayal of these lives in The Neglected Girl rests upon close personal acquaintance with a special group of girls who, though they were not brought up on charges in the Children's Court, yet were without question in grave need of probationary care.

New York: Survey Associates, 1914. 430p.