NCJ Number
95409
Date Published
Unknown
Length
35 pages
Annotation
Investigative activities are likely to become an increasingly important focus of juvenile police bureaus, although recent social changes could also produce other organizational responses.
Abstract
These specialized police units have their origins in the 1930's and have had three functions: prevention, screening, and investigation. Their philosophy of helping adolescents receive protection and treatment rather than punishment reflected a broad view of adolescence. The currently changing view of adolescence and the resulting children's rights movement will doubtless produce changes in organizational responses. The rising juvenile crime rate, especially the violent crime rate, has also created pressures for change within the juvenile bureaus themselves. Juvenile units are particularly sensitive to these pressures, because the growth of police professionalism has increased the emphasis on investigative functions; further, little administrative support exists for juvenile bureaus. These pressures toward change are currently resulting in legislative directives and case law decisions. Conservative and liberal factions in Washington and California have joined to accomplish their common goals in this endeavor. The future may bring the disbanding of juvenile bureaus, the allocation of their investigative functions to detectives, or, as indicated by a 1979 survey in California, a growing emphasis on investigative functions. A figure, footnotes, and 41 references are supplied.