Citation

Buchanan M, Castro ED, Kushner M, Krohn MD. Am. J. Crim. Justice 2020; ePub(ePub): ePub.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2020, College of Law Enforcement, Eastern Kentucky University, Publisher Holtzbrinck Springer Nature Publishing Group)

DOI

10.1007/s12103-020-09549-x

PMID

32837166 PMCID

Abstract

An early examination of the impact of COVID-19 on juvenile delinquency and juvenile justice in America, this review provides initial scholarship to rapidly evolving areas of research. Our appraisals of these topics are made after nearly 2 months of national COVID-19 mitigation measures, like social distancing and limited "non-essential" movement outside the home but also as states are gradually lifting stricter directives and reopening economic sectors. We consider the impact of these pandemic-related changes on twenty-first century youths, their behaviors, and their separate justice system. To forecast the immediate future, we draw from decades of research on juvenile delinquency and the justice system, as well as from reported patterns of reactions and responses to an unprecedented and ongoing situation. As post-pandemic studies on juvenile delinquency and juvenile justice proliferate, we urge careful consideration as to how they might influence societal and the system responses to youths' delinquency. Additional practical implications are discussed.

Language: en

Keywords

Delinquency; COVID-19; Juvenile justice; Juvenile justice reform