Juvenile Delinquent - MedFriendly.com

A juvenile delinquent is a minor (usually under 18 years

of age) who commits crimes or antisocial behaviors

and cannot be controlled by the authority of his/her

parents. Juvenile delinquents have not yet reached an

age in which they can be treated as an adult according

the laws of the community, although exceptions to this

exist and some juveniles are treated as adults.

FEATURED BOOK: Juvenile Delinquency

The decision of whether to charge a juvenile defender as an adult or as a juvenile is left

up to the prosecutor (district attorney). If a juvenile delinquency is not charged as an

adult, the individual is still subject to legal action, according to laws and procedures that

relate to minors. As such, there are juvenile courts and juvenile detention centers.

Most juvenile delinquents are young men. Other risk factor include racial minority status

(i.e., African-American, Latino), poverty, poor parental monitoring, parenting style

(permissive, indulgent, neglectful, and harsh), and/or associating with negative peer

groups.There are also at risk youth programs, youth boot camps, juvenile boot camps,

juvenile rehabilitation programs, and Scared Straight programs designed to help juvenile

delinquents stop their antisocial behaviors.

The actions of a juvenile delinquent are known as juvenile delinquency. Juvenile

delinquent comes from the Latin word "juvenus" meaning "youthful," and the Latin word

"delinquere" meaning "to fail." Put the two words together and you have "to fail youthful,"

meaning youths that fail.