Book Review: Kupchik, A. (2006). Judging Juveniles. New York: New York University Press

• Author: Sharon Tracy
• Published date: 01 January 2008
• Date: 01 January 2008
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.1177/1541204007308425
• Subject Matter: Articles

Book Review

Kupchik, A. (2006). Judging Juveniles. New York:

New York University Press.

DOI: 10.1177/1541204007308425

This book argues that prosecuting adolescents in criminal court creates an awkward ambivalence

for courtroom decision makers who must apply adult laws to adolescent defendants. This results in a

hybrid form of justice in the criminal court, what I call a sequential model of justice, which borrows

from both a criminal justice model and a juvenile justice model. (Kupchik, 2006, p. 2)

Chapter 1: Introduction: Growing Up Quickly

Kupchik introduces both juvenile justice and criminal court models, and his hybrid, sequential

model of justice, which borrows from both. He cites several case studies to illustrate his central theme:

“that the prosecution of adolescents in criminal court fails to resonate with culturally inscribed under-

standings of youthfulness.” Zimring (2000), Bartollas (2000), and Champion (2006), among others,

including Kupchik, find evidence that the juvenile system provides a “focus on rehabilitation and shap-

ing future behavior” rather than on “punishment and incapacitation.”

Kupchik establishes for the reader the background and effects of transfer laws, including the charac-

teristic of popular legal reforms. Before the 1920s, only 10 states allowed the transfer of juveniles to

criminal courts. Now, all but 10 states make it incredibly easy to transfer juveniles, whether the offenses

committed are serious and/or violent crimes against persons, or property crimes (Champion, 2006).

He opens his argument by stating that our current transfer policies are “counterproductive, counter-

intuitive, aggravates existing racial/ethnic disparities, and erodes necessary protections for juveniles.”

Chapter 2: Law and Context

Kupchik compares case processing across juvenile and criminal courts by choosing sites geograph-

ically close, with similar cultural, political, and social structures and by attending to features of court

communities varying across jurisdictions and how variations shape processing. He chooses New York

and New Jersey as sites for comparison. Measures for comparison include physical setting, organiza-

tion of court work, and membership stability of courtroom workgroups.

He notes that one must have knowledge of how court communities in each jurisdiction are orga-

nized to understand how case processing, decision making, and case outcomes vary across juvenile

and criminal courts.

One conclusion the author makes is that the nature of the offenses committed often lead adoles-

cents into the adult world without the protection of juvenile courts.

Chapter 3: The Process of Prosecuting Adolescents: How Formal?

Kupchik analyzes the juvenile courts as procedurally less formal with less attorney presence for

many of the juveniles. In addition, there are significant individuals in attendance, including treat-

ment professionals and families. These persons are encouraged to offer comments and solutions,

unlike in the criminal court setting.

A driving force behind Kupchik’s observations is that youth should be held less culpable than

adults. When transfers are made from juvenile court to criminal court, he says that the judges are

Youth Violence and

Juvenile Justice

Volume 6 Number 1

January 2008 105-108

© 2008 Sage Publications

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