NCJ Number
78596
Date Published
1978
Length
3 pages
Annotation
The pretrial detention of juvenile offenders in West Germany may conflict with the therapeutic goals that the juvenile justice sustem emphasizes; therefore, other options should receive greater emphasis.
Abstract
The Juvenile Criminal Justice Act states that pretrial detention should be imposed only when its intended effect cannot be achieved through other forms of intervention known for greater therapeutic value. The basic nature of pretrial detention is anti-therapeutic, although judges impose it as a means of immediate crisis intervention and as a method of demonstrating the realities of prison life. Although pretrial detention can never be completely replaced by other approaches, more efficient alternatives for therapeutic confinement should be established. This effort will take time, because the required facilities for alternatives do not yet exist. In addition, alternative provisions should also include offenders between ages 18 and 21.