NCJ Number
107155
Date Published
1987
Length
90 pages
Annotation
This 1981-1984 study of five urban juvenile courts focused on judicial decisions to transfer juveniles charged with violent offenses to adult court, with particular attention to criteria for transfer.
Abstract
The study included a sample of 225 juveniles not transferred from juvenile court who met certain criteria for current and prior offenses. A second sample of 201 juveniles consisted of those for whom a petition for transfer had been filed by the prosecutor. The two samples differed only in whether the juvenile was considered for transfer. Data abstracted from juvenile court records, police arrest reports, and court histories covered offense date, charges filed at apprehension and conviction, dates of hearings and court appearances, the transfer decision date, and the conviction date. Offense and offender information was also recorded. The study also included an assessment of youth attitudes and perceptions toward the nature and quality of juvenile and adult correctional facilities and an overall evaluation of facility and correctional environment. Preliminary, descriptive analyses examined the relationships between the transfer decision and offense and offender characteristics. Both two-dimensional and three-dimensional contingency tables were analyzed using odds ratios to examine variable associations. Qualitative methods complemented the quantitative analysis. In all sites, age at offense rather than prior offenses apparently dictated the transfer decision. The relationship between prior offenses, type of offense, and the transfer decision varied from site to site. The study examines policy options for criminalizing youth violence. 17 tables, 24 notes, and 120 references.