Are people dissatisfied with the courts as well as the police when they perceive high levels of disorder in their neighborhoods? Consistent with previous research, this study, using a representative sample of Canadian adults, demonstrates that people are significantly more negative about the police when they perceive high levels of disorder. They are not, however, more negative toward the courts when confronted with these social problems. It is possible that they have heard the police rhetoric—namely, that the police form the “thin blue line” between order and chaos. Although the public holds the police and the courts responsible for increasing rates of crime, victimization, and fear, they do not see the courts as being responsible for neighborhood disorder, which they see as being the sole responsibility of the police.
This study examined the frequently reported finding that the public believes that youth court sentences are too lenient and that young offenders should be processed in the adult justice system. These beliefs, along with the view that sentences for specific cases should be harsher, were all related to one another in an Ontario, Canada, survey. However, the nature of the relationship was complex, and more detailed analyses suggested that the wish to imprison young offenders was not solely a desire for more punitive responses but instead was due, in part, to perceptions that alternatives to prison were ineffective.
Substance abuse and its consequences have had an important impact on the juvenile justice system, but relatively little attention has been paid to assessing and treating juvenile offenders for substance-related problems. Female and minority youth have been particularly affected: Most young female offenders have some substance involvement, yet juvenile justice-based treatment interventions are scarce. Second, minority overrepresentation occurs at all stages of the juvenile justice system; minority youth are treated more severely, and minority drug offenders in particular are at increased risk of formal handling, detention, and custody placement. Increased attention is needed to implement effective treatment and prevention programs that are gender and culturally specific and that target known risk factors. The authors describe some of the key elements and policies needed to reduce the impact of current juvenile justice policies on substance-involved girls and minorities and to overcome barriers to providing more effective treatment and related services for these populations.
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