Recidivism in Juvenile Offenders

Abstract

By Eleanor Fidler, Social Work

Advisor: Anjanette Wells

Award: Excellence in Research Communication

Presentation ID: 199

Abstract: Studies have shown that juveniles are far more likely to re-offend than their adult counterparts. The juvenile crime rate in Hamilton County is high, and the types of crimes being committed by these juveniles might play a role in these high rates. There can be many contributing factors to why a juvenile re-offends, such as if services were put into place or not post adjudication, familial involvement, and possibly the nature of the crime being committed. To determine if there was any correlation between type of crime or offense and recidivism, data was drawn from a database that housed all Hamilton County juvenile offenders. To gather a sample, clients were pulled at random from the social work referral database from the Public Defender's office. This information, pulled from the database, included: race, number of arrests, past and present charges, and what their outcome was post adjudication. These numbers were put into various graphs and later analyzed to describe, if any, correlations present. Of the cases that were pulled, there were repeating patterns between the juvenile's first offense and if they reoffended in the juvenile system.