Teen Court: A National Movement
Delinquency Prevention
Practitioners of LRE have generally accepted that delinquency prevention is one of the
positive outcomes of LRE. Research conducted in the early 1980s (Hunter 1987) found that
when LRE instruction was properly implemented (using interactive techniques, adequately
prepared outside resource persons, balanced selection of case materials, etc.), it had a
positive effect on students' self-reported attitudes.
There is much anecdotal evidence and some research (see "Evaluation") indicating that young
offenders referred to teen court are less likely to continue delinquent behavior than
those offenders handled by traditional courts or disciplinary procedures. Teens tend to
see a decision of their peers as having greater validity than a judgment by an adult,
whether he or she is a police officer, a juvenile court judge, or a school assistant
principal. Teen jurors are not only more familiar with the environment in which the
offense occurred, they are also more likely to correctly assess the validity of excuses
offered by the defendants. Student volunteers also report that they are deterred from
delinquency by witnessing the consequences of the cases they encounter in court. Teen
courts hold young people accountable for offenses that, under the traditional justice or
disciplinary system, are often seen as receiving "slap on the wrist" types of
responses.
The Educational Role
Teen courts inform and educate young people about the role of law in our democracy and
about their role as active citizens. Teen courts share the goals of law-related education
by providing participants with the knowledge, attitudes, and skills to be active and
positive contributors to society. Ideally, teen courts seek to educate participants not
only about court procedure, sentencing options, and trial techniques but also about the
structure of our juvenile and adult justice systems, the meaning of justice, the role of
rehabilitation, and the relationship between rights and responsibilities. Young people who
are equipped with that knowledge are inclined to have a better understanding of their
connection to the American system of justice and to feel they are participants in it
instead of potential victims of it.
>>What are teen courts?
>>The Growth of Teen Courts
>>The Major Models
>>Steps for Implementing a Teen Court
>>Teen Courts and Law-Related Education
>>Delinquency Prevention; The Educational Role
>>Training
>>Profile: Salt Lake City's Peer Court
>>Student Courts
>>How Do Lawyers, Judges, and the Bar Support Teen
Courts?
>>Profile: A Lawyer's Inside View of Teen Court
>>Profile: The Wyoming Bar and Teen Court
>>Evaluation
>>Funding
>>Conclusion and References
>>Resources and Additional Information
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