Butts, Jeffrey A. and Jason Szkola (2021). The Juvenile Justice Response to Violence. In Geffner et al. (Eds.), Handbook of Interpersonal Violence and Abuse Across the Lifespan. Springer Reference.

Abstract

Rates of interpersonal violence are consistently and disproportionately higher among young people. In the United States, public officials expect the justice system to respond to violence in ways that reduce the severity and likelihood of future violence. The juvenile justice system is responsible for intervening to prevent and reduce violence among young people. This chapter reviews the scale and significance of youth violence in the United States and the most viable approaches for reducing and preventing violence. Policies and practices to address violence involving youth are continuously evolving, and the chapter highlights the effectiveness of several prominent examples of youth interventions, including programs championed by the public health sector, law enforcement, and social services.

[ read the chapter ]