Justice Policy Reform for High-Risk Juveniles: Using Science to Achieve Large-Scale Crime Reduction

Annual Review of Clinical Psychology, Forthcoming

Columbia Public Law Research Paper No. 14-375

58 Pages Posted: 30 Jan 2014 Last revised: 20 Nov 2014

See all articles by Jennifer L. Skeem

Jennifer L. Skeem

University of California, Berkeley

Elizabeth S. Scott

Columbia University - Law School

Edward Mulvey

University of Pittsburgh - Medical Center (UPMC)

Multiple version iconThere are 2 versions of this paper

Date Written: January 28, 2014

Abstract

After a distinctly punitive era, a period of remarkable reform in juvenile crime regulation has begun. Practical urgency has fueled interest in both crime reduction and research on the prediction and malleability of criminal behavior. In this rapidly changing context, high-risk youth - the small proportion of the population where crime is concentrated - present a conundrum. Research indicates that these are precisely the individuals to intensively treat to maximize crime reduction, but there are both real and imagined barriers to doing so. Institutional placement or criminal court processing can exclude these youths from interventions that would better protect public safety. In this article, we synthesize relevant research to help resolve this challenge in a manner that is consistent with the law’s core principles. In our view, adolescence offers unique opportunities for risk reduction that could (with modifications) be realized in the juvenile justice system in cooperation with other social institutions.

Keywords: adolescent development, juvenile justice, callous-unemotional, life-course persistent, serious offender

Suggested Citation

Skeem, Jennifer L. and Scott, Elizabeth S. and Mulvey, Edward, Justice Policy Reform for High-Risk Juveniles: Using Science to Achieve Large-Scale Crime Reduction (January 28, 2014). Annual Review of Clinical Psychology, Forthcoming, Columbia Public Law Research Paper No. 14-375, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2386959 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.2386959

Jennifer L. Skeem (Contact Author)

University of California, Berkeley ( email )

120 Haviland Hall
Berkeley, CA 94720-7400
United States

Elizabeth S. Scott

Columbia University - Law School ( email )

435 West 116th Street
New York, NY 10025
United States
(212) 854-9758 (Phone)
(212) 854-7946 (Fax)

Edward Mulvey

University of Pittsburgh - Medical Center (UPMC) ( email )

Pittsburgh, PA
United States

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