The Costs of Delinquency

• DOI: http://doi.org/10.1111/1745-9133.12073
• Date: 01 February 2014
• Author: Mark A. Greenwald,Sherry L. Jackson,Michael T. Baglivio
• Published date: 01 February 2014

POLICY ESSAY

JUVENILE ECONOMIC SANCTIONS

The Costs of Delinquency

Mark A. Greenwald

Sherry L. Jackson

Michael T.Baglivio

Florida Department of Juvenile Justice

Haynes, Cares, and Ruback (2014, this issue) present an overview of both the

theoretical background and the history of economic sanctions in the criminal

justice system. They follow with predictive analyses of who is more likely to

receive economic sanctions, the amount imposed, and whether percentage of amount

paid affects subsequent reoffending. This article should be considered an important step

in understanding the implementation and outcomes of juvenile restitution, as well as a

valuable contribution to expanding the dialogue on restitution. Most of the prior work

on restitution has focused on adults, and many of the studies that involved juveniles are

now quite dated. Finding appropriate and effective intermediate sanctions similar to those

described by Mears, Shollenberger,Willison, Owens, and Butts (2010) has been an ongoing

quest for the juvenile justice system. Understanding the impact and effectiveness of these

interventions is absolutely critical from both a human and a fiscal perspective. As Haynes

et al. point out, the topic of restitution is timely because of the current interest of both

policy makers and the public in implementing less punitive, more effective approaches to

juvenile justice. They offer several important takeaway points.

Main Takeaways

Restorative Justice and Timeliness of Exploration of Restitution

The first takeaway point is that restitution is a restorative intervention. A critical component

of restorative policies is that the offender (juvenile) should understand the harm he or she has

caused to the victim. Repairing this harm through restitution or through other means can,

as Haynes et al. (2014) put it, increase victim satisfaction with the criminal justice system

as well as facilitate the offender’s reintegration into the community. Restorative approaches

Direct correspondence to Mark A. Greenwald, Florida Department of Juvenile Justice, 2737 Centerview Drive,

Tallahassee, FL 32399 (e-mail: mark.greenwald@djj.state.fl.us).

DOI:10.1111/1745-9133.12073 C2014 American Society of Criminology 61

Criminology & Public Policy rVolume 13 rIssue 1