An Empirical Analysis of the Effects of Juvenile Offender Placement in Adult Facilities on Recidivism Rate

Over time, efforts have been aimed at protecting the public while at the same time resocializing young people who have entered the juvenile justice system. However, once they have entered, the juvenile justice system is putting young offenders into adult incarceration facilities resulting in them actually becoming worse criminals with higher chances of reoffending. This study demonstrates that not only are juvenile offenders different from adult offenders, they need to be treated as such. This thesis will discuss the ways in which youth offenders are different from adults and use quantitative analyses to show that juveniles incarcerated in adult prisons have a higher recidivism rate, and that juvenile public policy in many different states increases young offenders' chances of reoffending. I conclude that while juvenile offenders need punishment, they also need to be successfully reintegrated into society. Keeping them out of adult incarceration facilities is one important way to do this.