NCJ Number
137774
Date Published
1992
Length
6 pages
Annotation
Study data, provided to the National Juvenile Court Data Archive by State and local agencies responsible for collecting or reporting information regarding the processing of juvenile court cases, were used to explore the relationship between the use of juvenile restitution and recidivism.
Abstract
Cases were selected for study if they involved a youth younger than age 17 at the time of disposition and if the most serious charge was robbery, assault, burglary, theft, auto theft, or vandalism. Two samples were used: 7,233 cases handled informally by the probation department and 6,336 adjudicated cases placed on formal probation. The results indicate that recidivism was lower for juveniles who paid restitution to their victims directly or through community service. This result was apparent in offenders who paid restitution voluntarily as part of an informal agreement as well as adjudicated juvenile probationers who were ordered to pay. 2 tables