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The long reach of juvenile and criminal legal debt: How monetary sanctions shape legal cynicism and adultification

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  • Paik, Leslie
  • Giuffre, Andrea
  • Harris, Alexes
  • Shannon, Sarah

Abstract

Previous research has established the deleterious long-term effects of juvenile legal system involvement such as increased risk of criminal legal system involvement as adults. This paper examines retrospective accounts of how that process occurs by exploring the following research question: how does one’s involvement in the juvenile legal system, which includes monetary sanctions, shape peoples’ views of law and legal institutions and with what consequences? Based on 19 interviews with adults who have legal debt from both juvenile and criminal legal systems, the paper focuses on four aspects of the long-reaching effects of juvenile legal involvement and juvenile monetary sanctions: legal socialization, adultification, legal cynicism, and future aspirations. In all these aspects, we show the organizational constraints that shape individuals’ perspectives about the law and the impact of monetary sanctions on their lives. In doing so, the paper shows how monetary sanctions associated with juvenile cases add to the cumulative disadvantage of legal system involvement.

Suggested Citation

  • Paik, Leslie & Giuffre, Andrea & Harris, Alexes & Shannon, Sarah, 2023. "The long reach of juvenile and criminal legal debt: How monetary sanctions shape legal cynicism and adultification," Children and Youth Services Review, Elsevier, vol. 154(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:cysrev:v:154:y:2023:i:c:s019074092300316x
    DOI: 10.1016/j.childyouth.2023.107121
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Schmitz, Rachel M. & Tyler, Kimberly A., 2016. "Growing up before their time: The early adultification experiences of homeless young people," Children and Youth Services Review, Elsevier, vol. 64(C), pages 15-22.
    2. Ozkan Eren & Naci Mocan, 2021. "Juvenile Punishment, High School Graduation, and Adult Crime: Evidence from Idiosyncratic Judge Harshness," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 103(1), pages 34-47, March.
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