Practice Finding The Purpose

Juvenile delinquency is once again on the rise. This year alone, New City saw a nine- percent increase in the number of offenses committed by minors. Whereas one might expect this rise to be the result of an increasing number of juvenile offenders, it is in fact due to a dramatic increase in repeat offenses, brought on by lenient penalties and procedures. Family court has no provisions for dealing more harshly with repeat offenders.

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Juvenile delinquency seems once again to be on the rise, with a nine- percent increase in the number of offenses committed by teens this year alone. Legislators seeking to minimize this damage are naively calling for mandatory incarceration of first-time juvenile offenders. What lawmakers have not considered is the effect on the statistics of a 12 percent increase in the number of teenagers.