The Next Generation of Prisoners

• Author: Chad R. Trulson,James W. Marquart,Ashley G. Blackburn,Janet L. Mullings
• Published date: 01 January 2007
• Date: 01 January 2007
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.1177/1541204006295156
• Subject Matter: Articles

35

The Next Generation of

Prisoners

Toward an Understanding of Violent

Institutionalized Delinquents

Ashley G. Blackburn

The University of North Texas

Janet L. Mullings

Sam Houston State University

James W. Marquart

The University of Texas at Dallas

Chad R. Trulson

The University of North Texas

Violent behavior by juveniles, along with the juvenile incarceration rate, has been on the

decline in the past several years. Despite these declines, institutionalized juveniles, particu-

larly violent offenders, constitute the population most at risk of becoming the next generation

of adult prisoners. Using a sample of youth incarcerated in the Texas Youth Commission

(TYC), this article first examines gender differences among numerous self-report measures

including but not limited to violence, maltreatment, life stress, and depression. Next, multi-

variate analysis revealed that age, minority status, substance dependency, life stress, and gang

membership were significantly related to violent offending. Analyses also revealed that

numerous variables were related to depression among incarcerated male and female delin-

quents. This article ends with a discussion of policy implications for incarcerated delinquents.

Keywords: juvenile offenders; gender; violence; depression

On any given day in the United States, there are more than 90,000 juveniles confined in

juvenile correctional institutions (Sickmund, Sladky, & Kang, 2005). Of these 90,000

institutionalized juveniles, 40% have been confined for committing a violent offense

(Sickmund et al., 2005). Although policy makers and politicians tend to place a dispropor-

tionate focus on adult offenders, attention to institutionalized juvenile populations is justi-

fied on a number of fronts. One of the most significant concerns with the population of

institutionalized juveniles is that they are most at risk of facing adult imprisonment once they

exit the juvenile justice system and transition from adolescence to adulthood. In essence, pre-

viously institutionalized delinquents are most at risk of becoming the next generation of pris-

oners. This concern is not without merit, for recidivism figures have estimated that, in some

states, as many as 55% of institutionalized juveniles will recidivate back into the criminal jus-

tice system as adults, many for a violent offense (Snyder & Sickmund, 2006). Although not

Youth Violence and

Juvenile Justice

Volume 5 Number 1

January 2007 35-56

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10.1177/1541204006295156

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36 Youth Violence and Juvenile Justice

all repeat offenders will be institutionalized as adults, a significant portion will be, which

makes a focus on institutionalized delinquents particularly important.

Perhaps more so than other institutionalized delinquents, incarcerated delinquents with

violent tendencies often enter state institutions with multiple problems ranging from sub-

stance abuse, to mental illness, to stress brought on by traumatic life events. Many of these

problems co-occur, making it increasingly difficult to treat and rehabilitate these multiple

problem offenders. Juvenile correctional institutions are often faced with the responsibility

of attending to these multiple problems while also ensuring that the juvenile is sufficiently

punished for his or her acts. These sometimes-conflicting goals of rehabilitation and pun-

ishment often confound the process of juvenile corrections. Increased awareness concerning

the special problems of the violent juvenile offender may decrease the chance that they will

return to either the juvenile or adult correctional systems as violent adult offenders.

The route to violent offending by juveniles is long and influenced by many social and psy-

chological factors. This article examines a group of juvenile offenders, many of whom are

violent, housed in the Texas Youth Commission (TYC). This article first reviews the relevant

literature concerning violent juvenile offending. It then examines gender differences in delin-

quent history and self-reported violent offending among this sample of institutionalized delin-

quents. It also examines gender differences on indicators such as maltreatment, life stress,

mental health history, and depression. Multivariate analyses then examine the predictors of

violent offending and depression among this sample of institutionalized offenders. This arti-

cle concludes with a discussion of policy implications for institutionalized juveniles.

Violence Committed by Incarcerated Juveniles

An increase in juvenile arrests for Violent Crime Index offenses between the years 1988

and 1994 returned the national spotlight to violent juveniles. Awareness of increased violence

among juvenile populations resulted in a media blitz on the issue as well as new policy ini-

tiatives focused on violent juvenile offenders, including more stringent arrest and court-based

policies. After peaking in 1994, juvenile arrests for Violent Crime Index offenses declined

steadily from 1995 to 1999 (Snyder, 2000). In 2003, the juvenile arrest rate for Violent Crime

Index offenses continued to decline for the ninth consecutive year, reaching its lowest level

since at least 1980 and falling 48% from its highest peak in 1994 (Snyder, 2005).

Even with a decline in the juvenile crime rate, according to the Census of Juveniles in

Residential Placement (CJRP), in 2003 there was a nationwide total of 96,655 delinquent

juveniles housed in residential placement facilities: 878 for homicide offenses, 7,452 for

sexual assault offenses, 7,495 for aggravated assault offenses, and 6,230 for robbery

offenses, for a total of 22,055 Violent Crime Index offenders (Snyder & Sickmund, 2006).

Between 1997 and 1999, the state of Texas witnessed a 10% increase in the incarcerated

juvenile male population and a 16% increase in the incarcerated juvenile female popula-

tion. Of that population, 29% were Violent Crime Index offenders (Sickmund, 2004). In

2003, 6,687 boys and 972 girls in the state of Texas were housed in residential placement,

of which 2,049 (1,881 males and 168 females) were incarcerated for committing Violent

Crime Index offenses (Sickmund et al., 2005). Although violent arrests have decreased in

the past several years, there is clearly a need to continue to examine the experiences and

outcomes of violent juvenile populations.