- most youth who commit felonies greatly reduce their offending over time;
- longer stays in juvenile institutions do not reduce recidivism and institutional placement and even raised offending levels in those with the lowest level of offending;
- offenders who receive community services after incarceration are more likely to attend school, go to work, and reduce offending; and
- substance abuse treatment reduces substance use and criminal offending, at least in the short term.
The study also indentifies two factors that appear to distinguish juveniles whose high rate of offending declines from those whose offending level persists: lower levels of substance abuse and greater stability in daily routines (measured by stability in living arrangements and work and school attendance).
Overall, the adolescents in this study reported very high levels of substance use and it was a “strong, prevalent predictor of offending.” The study finds that treatment appears to reduce substance use and offending at least in the short term. Youth in treatment for at least 90 days with significant family involvement greatly reduced their alcohol and marijuana use and offending over the six months that followed.
The study was sponsored by the federal Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention in partnership with state and federal agencies and private foundations. It follows 1,354 serious juvenile offenders ages 14 to 18 in Maricopa County, Arizona (metropolitan Phoenix) and Philadelphia County, Pennsylvania for seven years after conviction. The offenders were found guilty of at least one serious violent, property, or drug crime (almost all felonies). It is the most comprehensive data set currently available about serious adolescent offenders and their lives.
