Blended Sentencing in American Juvenile Courts

The Changing Borders of Juvenile Justice: Transfer of Adolescents to the Criminal Court 145-180 (Jeffrey Fagan and Franklin E. Zimring, eds, 2000)

35 Pages Posted: 21 Feb 2014 Last revised: 31 May 2014

Date Written: 2000

Abstract

Juvenile justice has come full circle in this century. With the creation of juvenile courts one hundred years ago, reformers achieved their objective of removing juveniles from the harsh, punishment-oriented criminal justice system. Now, juvenile justice is once again embracing criminal court handling of certain juvenile offenders and diminishing the role of the juvenile court. In this chapter, we discuss a relatively new legislative change aimed at enhancing sentencing authority and punishments in juvenile court: "blended sentencing," which allows juvenile courts to impose adult sentences or extend their sentencing jurisdiction into early adulthood. Along with the punitive trend in juvenile justice laws, policy makers continue to search for the appropriate role for the juvenile justice system in controlling serious and violent juvenile offenders. Blended sentencing (also called "blended jurisdiction") increases the sentencing options available in the juvenile court through a limited "blending" of juvenile and adult sentencing. States have adopted one of three blended sentencing options. The juvenile court may: (1) impose a juvenile or an adult sentence, (2) impose both a juvenile and adult sentence, with the adult sentence suspended under conditions, or (3) impose a sentence past the normal limit of juvenile court jurisdiction; typically, a hearing is held when the juvenile reaches eighteen to twenty-one to determine if an adult sentence will be imposed. In this chapter, we review the structure and function of blended sentencing laws and provide an analysis of their legal and constitutional implications. We discuss their likely effects on juvenile offenders and the juvenile justice system, and a number of potential benefits and risks of blended sentencing, drawing on available outcome data of blended sentencing in two states. We conclude by discussing preferred blended sentencing schemes.

Keywords: Juvenile Justice, Criminal Court, Juvenile Court, Transfer, Waiver, Blended Sentencing, Juvenile Offenders

Suggested Citation

Redding, Richard E. and Howell, James, Blended Sentencing in American Juvenile Courts (2000). The Changing Borders of Juvenile Justice: Transfer of Adolescents to the Criminal Court 145-180 (Jeffrey Fagan and Franklin E. Zimring, eds, 2000), Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2398609

Richard E. Redding (Contact Author)

Chapman University ( email )

One University Drive
Orange, CA 92866-1099
United States
714-628-2688 (Phone)
714-628-2564 (Fax)

James Howell

Independent ( email )

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