NCJ Number
198849
Journal
International Journal of Offender Therapy and Comparative Criminology Volume: 47 Issue: 1 Dated: February 2003 Pages: 6-36
Date Published
February 2003
Length
31 pages
Annotation
After synthesizing the literature on clinical and empirical findings related to youth homicide, this article reviews the literature regarding the treatment of juvenile homicide offenders.
Abstract
The bulk of the literature reviewed presents findings from studies of youth who typically ranged in age from 12- to 17-years-old, although some research included adolescents in their late teen years. Issues examined in this literature review are the relationship between psychological disorder and youth homicide, neurological impairment in youth who commit homicide, their intelligence, their home environment, their involvement in other antisocial behavior, substance abuse, and other social difficulties. Some consensus among the studies examined suggests that a portrait of the typical adolescent murderer can be constructed. Today's young killer tends to be male and is unlikely to be psychotic or mentally retarded, to do well in school, or to come from a home where his biological parents live together in a healthy and peaceful relationship. He is likely to have experienced or to have been exposed to violence in his home and to have a prior arrest record. He is increasingly more likely to use and/or abuse drugs and alcohol than juvenile homicide offenders in the past. This review advises, however, that many youth who have these characteristics and backgrounds do not commit murder. The literature on the treatment of adolescent murderers is sparse and suffers from the same problems as the general literature on juvenile homicide and violent juvenile delinquents. Most of the treatment results are based on clinical case reports of a few cases referred to the study author for evaluation and/or treatment. The extent to which these cases of juvenile murderers are representative of the population of young killers is unknown. In addition, the interventions used were often not based on established therapeutic principles or empirically documented successes. Programs were frequently not tailored to the characteristics of the juvenile murderer. Although most young killers will eventually be released back into society, few receive any type of mental health treatment following the homicides. The likelihood of juvenile murderers receiving intensive psychiatric intervention apparently diminishes as they enter adolescence. Long-term outcomes for juvenile murderers are surprisingly positive, although such data are limited. Young killers tend to make a satisfactory adjustment in prison and in the community after release, and they tend to relate well with their families. Future directions for research are suggested. 166 references