Boys among Men: Trying and Sentencing Juveniles as Adults

(Hardback)

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Description

Images of youngsters in handcuffs and prison uniforms have become common. As America's fascination with crime and justice has grown, so has attention to the ways in which youthful offenders are charged, tried, and sentenced. While they may have been once viewed as misguided youth, more and more juveniles are being charged as adults and sentenced to adult prisons. Myers questions whether doing so is an effective deterrent for young offenders, if rehabilitation is out of the question, and if youth and society are better served by sending children away to adult prisons rather than juvenile detention facilities. These questions and others are addressed in this careful analysis of the history and evolution of transfer laws that are increasingly prevalent throughout the United States.

Reviews

In this exceptional overview of the process of juvenile waivers to adult court, Myers includes a detailed account of the history of the juvenile court system and does an excellent job of discussing the social and political context surrounding increases in transfers. He also gives clear descriptions of types of transfers as well as the process by which transfers occur, with a fair synopsis of prosecutorial and judicial discretion that should be easily understood by undergraduates and others not familiar with the juvenile justice system.Recommended. * Choice *
Public pressure has led most U.S. states to pass laws making it easier to waive juvenile offenders to adult criminal court. Myers traces the history of this trend, weighs the underwhelming research support for this policy, and offers a framework for discussing youth violence issues. * Reference & Research Book News *

Author Bio

David L. Myers is Associate Professor of Criminology and a Dean's Associate in the School of Graduate Studies and Research at Indiana University of Pennsylvania, where he also directs the Doctoral Program in Criminology and the Center for Research in Criminology. He is a member of the IUP Research Institute Advisory Board and the Institutional Review Board of the National Center for Juvenile Justice, as well as an Associate Editor and Columnist for Criminal Justice Research Reports. He is the author of Excluding Violent Youths from Juvenile Court: The Effectiveness of Legislative Waiver (2001), and his articles have appeared in such journals as Youth Violence and Juvenile Justice, Journal of Juvenile Justice and Detention Services, Criminal Justice Review, Justice Research and Policy, and Criminal Justice Studies.