Chapter 13: The Juvenile Justice System

Test Bank

Multiple Choice

1. The contemporary juvenile justice system strongly emphasizes ______.

A. discipline

B. rehabilitation

C. empowering victims

D. parent repsonsibility

2. In the late 1760s, under English common law, children over ______ years old were treated as adults by the justice system.

A. 7

B. 9

C. 12

D. 14

3. In the 18th century, the concept of ______ gave fathers the right to use strict discipline on unruly children.

A. paterfamilias

B. parens patriae

C. patria postestas

D. prima facie

4. During the 19th and early 20th centuries, the ______ movement sought to reform the juvenile justice system.

A. child savers

B. children’s court

C. reform school

D. youth advocate

5. ______ were state-run shelters for dependent, neglected, and delinquent children in 19th-century America.

A. Borstals

B. Boweries

C. Houses of refuge

D. Youth development centers

6. The juvenile court was created during the ______ Era.

A. Colonial

B. Civil Rights

C. Progressive

D. Reconstruction

7. The ______ doctrine gives the state power to act as a child’s parent.

A. paterfamilias

B. parens patriae

C. patria postestas

D. prima facie

8. The first juvenile-specific court was established in ______.

A. Chicago

B. Baltimore

C. Philadelphia

D. New York City

9. When juvenile court was created, children younger than ______ were removed from the adult system.

A. 7

B. 11

C. 16

D. 18

10. The landmark case ______ established due process rights for juveniles.

A. In re Gault

B. In re Winship

C. Kent v. United States

D. Graham v. Florida

11. ______ changed the standard of evidence for juvenile courts.

A. In re Gault

B. In re Winship

C. Kent v. United States

D. Graham v. Florida

12. In ______, the court held that juveniles brought to trial had no right to a jury.

A. McKeiver v. Pennsylvania

B. In re Winship

C. Roper v. Simmons

D. In re Gault

13. The standard of proof in the juvenile system is ______.

A. probable cause

B. a preponderance of the evidence

C. clear and convincing

D. beyond a reasonable doubt

14. In ______, the court addressed capital punishment for juvenile offenders.

A. In re Winship

B. Roper v. Simmons

C. McKeiver v. Pennsylvania

D. Graham v. Florida

15. In ______, the court addressed life sentences for juvenile offenders.

A. In re Winship

B. Graham v. Florida

C. Roper v. Simmons

D. McKeiver v. Pennsylvania

16. In ______, it was decided that mandatory sentences of life without the possibility for parole for juvenile offenders was unconstitutional.

A. Graham v. Florida

B. In re Winship

C. Miller v. Alabama

D. McKeiver v. Pennsylvania

17. In 2016, Supreme Court ruled that ______ and Miller v. Alabama must be applied retroactively – ruling that individuals who as juveniles received automatic life sentences with no chance of parole must be resentenced or considered for parole.

A. A. In re Winship

B. Roper v. Simmons

C. McKeiver v. Pennsylvania

D. Montgomery v. Louisiana

18. Youthful offenders are typically aged ______ and under.

A. 15

B. 16

C. 18

D. 21

19. Which term refers to youthful offenders who engage in illegal acts, such as theft, burglary, robbery, property damage, or the sale or use of illegal drugs?

A. juvenile delinquency

B. status offense

C. rehabilitation

D. criminal behavior

20. This term refers to acts illegal only for juveniles such as: running away, truancy, possession of alcohol, smoking cigarettes, or curfew violations.

A. juvenile delinquency

B. status offense

C. rehabilitation

D. criminal behavior

21. A curfew violation is an example of (a) ______.

A. delinquency

B. status offense

C. criminal offense

D. summary offense

22. From 2001 to 2014, the juvenile crime rate decreased by ______ %.

A. 14

B. 24

C. 44

D. 64

23. Which law was designed to prevent delinquency and improve the juvenile justice system in 1974?

A. Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act

B. Graham and Miller Act

C. Punitive Punishment Act

D. Nationwide Rehabilitation Act

24. The Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention publishes the ______, which provides research, strategies, and tactics for practitioners and scholars on evidence based approaches throughout the system.

A. Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Papers

B. Graham and Miller Guidelines

C. Journal of Juvenile Justice

D. Nationwide Rehabilitation Action Measures

25. In the 1990s, there was an unfounded threat of a juvenile ______ and increased violent crime.

A. supercriminals

B. superdelinquents

C. superteens

D. superpredators

26. The Federal Bureau of Investigation’s (FBI) Uniform Crime Reports (UCR) arrest data show juvenile offending and arrests are ______ over time.

A. increasing

B. decreasing

C. staying the same

D. No data are available on juvenile arrests.

27. Girls caught up in the system are more likely to have been victims of ______.

A. foster care

B. sexual abuse

C. gang affiliation

D. physical abuse

28. Which of the following groups are arrested at the lowest rate according to FBI data?

A. White children

B. Black children

C. American Indian children

D. Hispanic children

29. Which of the following groups are arrested at the highest rate for serious violent and property crimes?

A. White children

B. Black children

C. American Indian children

D. Hispanic children

30. The decision to keep juvenile offenders from entering formal processing in the juvenile justice system is called ______.

A. diversion

B. discretion

C. deflection

D. distraction

31. The concept in loco parentis means ______.

A. police have the authority to strictly punish a child

B. an institution assumes parental status and responsibilities

C. police do not have the right to interfere with parental responsibilities

D. the state has the power to act as a parent

32. When dealing with a minor violation or status offense, police officers will take juveniles where?

A. prison

B. to their parents

C. juvenile detention

D. community center

33. A police officer is an agent of the juvenile justice system charged with acting in place of a ______.

A. parent

B. mentor

C. teacher

D. sibling

34. In the 1990s, a police prevention program was designed to educate schoolchildren about the dangers of drugs. What was the name of this program?

A. Planned Parenthood

B. Drug Awareness Resistance Education

C. School Safety Officer

D. Citizen Arrest Law

35. Which professional is generally employed by the local police department and assigned to one school and interacts with the administrators, teachers, and students as part of the community policing efforts?

A. school resource officer

B. parole officer

C. citizen officer

D. crossing guard

36. Which term describes how students are diverted from the educational system to the juvenile justice system to their detriment?

A. parole

B. house arrest

C. school-to-prison pipeline

D. high school dropouts

37. The first step in juvenile justice processing is ______.

A. intake

B. diversion

C. booking

D. arraignment

38. ______ is when a juvenile is placed on informal probation.

A. Adjudication

B. Diversion

C. Parole

D. Deferred status

39. Which of the following rights is not afforded to juveniles during court proceedings?

A. jury trial

B. protection against self-incrimination

C. right to confront witnesses

D. right to counsel

40. The predisposition report in the juvenile system is similar to the ______ in the adult system.

A. consent decree

B. presentence report

C. adjudication report

D. conditions of probation

41. In cases where juveniles are detained in a secure facility, a ______ is held to determine probable cause and whether a child or juvenile should be held in a facility or released to a legal guardian.

A. adjudication

B. detention hearing

C. disposition hearing

D. consent decree

42. The ______ of a juvenile offender is similar to a criminal court trial in the adult system.

A. adjudication

B. detention hearing

C. disposition hearing

D. consent decree

43. The most common disposition for juvenile offenders is ______.

A. probation

B. house arrest

C. secure confinement

D. restitution/fines

44. Which of the following is a component of the predisposition report?

A. juvenile’s work history

B. probation officer’s personal opinion

C. psychological evaluations

D. recommendation for a longer sentence

45. When a juvenile is released or completes his or her sentence, they are ______.

A. released to a halfway house

B. placed on probation

C. placed on parole

D. placed in aftercare

46. ______ is the most widely used and least effective disposition.

A. probation

B. secure lockup

C. group homes

D. residential placement

47. Automatic waivers are shaped by ______.

A. law

B. judicial discretion

C. police discretion

D. prosecutorial discretion

48. A prosecutor can transfer a juvenile to adult court for harsher punishment through ______.

A. direct files

B. judicial waivers

C. reverse waivers

D. automatic waivers

49. Under which of the following waivers, does a prosecutor have the discretion to transfer a juvenile if they believe the offense and offender warrant harsher punishment?

A. direct files

B. judicial waivers

C. reverse waivers

D. automatic waivers

50. Which of the following waivers are designated for offenses such as murder, kidnapping, armed robbery, and carjacking?

A. direct files

B. judicial waivers

C. reverse waivers

D. automatic waivers

51. What mechanism allows a judge or prosecutor to send the case back to the juvenile court?

A. direct files

B. judicial waivers

C. reverse waivers

D. automatic waivers

52. Which mechanism is determined by legislative action and transfers juveniles of certain ages designated in statutes for violent offenses?

A. direct files

B. judicial waivers

C. reverse waivers

D. automatic waivers

53. Juveniles waived to adult courts receive longer ______ and longer parole sentences than their counterparts.

A. incarceration

B. psychiatric treatment

C. skills training

D. medical care

54. Research indicates that juvenile waivers fail at ______.

A. recidivism

B. deterrence

C. retribution

D. disciplinary

55. Which statistic most accurately describes the frequency of sexually violent incidents involving juveniles?

A. one in five

B. two in seven

C. three in ten

D. four in twenty

56. According to critics, who opposes the use of juvenile transfers?

A. political representatives

B. school boards

C. correctional officers

D. the American Bar Association

57. Juveniles tried and convicted in adult courts are ______ to commit offenses in the future compared with adjudicated youth.

A. more likely

B. less likely

C. just as likely

D. there is no comparison

58. Waivers for juveniles to adult courts are controversial because the practice undermines the doctrine of ______.

A. pater familias

B. parens patriae

C. patria postestas

D. prima facie

59. Juveniles waived to adult court receive ______ incarceration and/or ______ parole sentences than their counterparts who remain in the juvenile sytem.

A. longer; longer

B. longer; shorter

C. shorter; shorter

D. shorter; longer

60. Unlike in the adult system, juvenile statues include language requiring who to pay restitution to the victims?

A. the state where the crime occurred

B. the parents of the juvenile

C. the community where the crime occurred

61. In the juvenile justice system, a victim has the right to be notified when a juvenile is being ______.

A. arrested

B. charged

C. detained

D. questioned

62. Which entity has the right to extend victim rights to juvenile-perpetrated offenses?

A. federal government

B. states

C. police

D. judges

63. The juvenile justice system is characterized by disparities in youth in terms of ______.

A. gender and race

B. gender only

C. race only

D. gender, race and age

64. A youth adjudicated as delinquent has committed a ______ offense.

A. status

B. criminal

C. juvenile

D. minor

65. The notion of ‘girls gone wild’ is based on arrest data for ______ offenses.

A. status

B. criminal

C. juvenile

D. minor

1. Unlike the adult system, the juvenile system focuses on rehabilitation.

2. Generally, children under the age of 18 are viewed as incapable of forming criminal intent.

3. Houses of refuge were reform schools that sought to rehabilitate delinquent children through hard work.

4. The juvenile court was based upon the medical model.

5. Juvenile justice is rooted in the principle of parens patriae.

6. In re Gault established the juvenile’s right to a trial by jury.

7. Juvenile court proceedings are open to the public.

8. The execution of juvenile offenders is a violation of the Eighth Amendment.

9. Juvenile courts only deal with youth who have been charged with a criminal offense.

10. Running away from home is a status offense.

11. The juvenile superpredator theory of the 1990s proved to be true.

12. Juvenile arrests have been on the rise since 2001.

13. Unlike adult crime, females are more likely than males to be involved in juvenile offenses.

14. Minorities represent a disproportionate number of arrested juvenile offenders.

15. The police only require reasonable suspicion to arrest a juvenile.

16. An important element of the growth in the school-to-prison pipeline is zero-tolerance policies.

17. The majority of youth who enter the juvenile system are referred by teachers and school administrators.

18. Juvenile proceedings are completely confidential.

19. Victim’s rights do not apply to those victimized by juveniles.

20. Juvenile statutes include language requiring parents of the delinquent to pay restitution to the victim.

1. Describe the treatment of juvenile offenders in 18th- and 19th-century England.

2. Describe the reforms made to the juvenile justice system during the Progressive Era.

3. Explain the principle of parens patriae.

4. Identify the rights granted to juvenile offenders in the landmark case In re Gault.

5. Identify the reasons that the death penalty was eliminated for persons who committed their offense when they were juveniles.

6. Summarize the Supreme Court cases dealing with life sentences for juvenile offenders.

7. Explain the difference between delinquency and status offenses.

8. Explain why the juvenile offending rate rose in the 1980s–1990s and describe how the public and politicians reacted.

9. Describe how girls differ from boys with respect to juvenile offending.

10. Explain what is meant by the “school-to-prison pipeline.”

11. Identify the types of dispositions available to juvenile court judges.

12. Describe the options available after a juvenile is processed at intake.

13. Explain the purpose of a juvenile waiver and discuss why they are controversial.

14. Define the four types of juvenile waiver.

15. Describe how the rights of victims of juvenile crime have changed over time.