Reference no: EM133622615
Question: Attempt to be a juvenile probation officer attempting to decide what to do about each of the court referrals in order to make recommendations to a judge. Should a case be dismissed? Should a case be diverted to another program? Should a case be adjudicated? If so, should a case be adjudicated within the juvenile justice system or should the case be waived to adult court?
Case A
Brian is a 13-year-old male who has come to the attention of a court for an offense of vandalism. He and a friend "tagged" a school building with graffiti and broke several windows in the school gymnasium. The school principal estimated the total damage and cleanup costs to be approximately $1,300. Brian resides with both natural parents and two younger siblings. The family income is $65,000 annually. Brian admits to the offense but refuses to identify his co- offender. The family has agreed to pay complete restitution. Brian has no prior juvenile record, although he has been disciplined several times in school in the past year for minor violations of school rules. His grades, which were formerly A's and B's, have fallen off to C's and D's.
Case B
Quint is a 17-year-old male who has been referred to a court for aggravated robbery. He is accused of robbing a convenience store and assaulting the clerk. He is a high school dropout with a lengthy history of arrests including robbery, burglary, car theft, and larceny. Quint was adjudicated delinquent for burglary 10 months before the current offense and placed on probation. His probation officer reports that he has been uncooperative and hostile toward supervision. He lives off and on with his mother and three younger siblings. His mother reports that she has little control over his behavior and that he spends many nights away from home.
She suspects that he is using drugs.
Case C
Carlos is a 15-year-old male who was referred to a court for truancy. He has missed 34 school days in the past 90 days and is failing in all his classes. His parents report that they send him to school every day, but he never stays. Even when they take him to the front door of the school, he leaves immediately after they do. Carlos is of average intelligence and relates well to his peers. He has no other involvement with illegal activity, and until this past school year he did well in school, attending regularly. His parents have no explanation for the change in his behavior.
Case D
Cathy is a 14-year-old female who has been referred to a court for running away. Her parents report she is a chronic runaway, having left home on more than 10 occasions since age 12. She is in the seventh grade. She has been held back twice and is thus two grade levels behind her peers.
Cathy was diagnosed with ADD at age seven. She is currently taking Ritalin under a physician's supervision. Her parents have attempted to get help for Cathy on many occasions, but nothing seems to be effective. She has been referred once for shoplifting, three times for truancy, and three times previously for running away.