Pathways of transferred juvenile delinquents: A qualitative study about the consequences of transfer on criminal justice pathways into (young) adulthood. (FWOAL658)

In Belgium juvenile offenders under the age of 18 usually appear in the Youth Court. By exception, however, the juvenile can be tried according to the rules of penal law, either in Criminal Court or in the 'Extended Youth Court'. This mechanism is called 'transfer', 'waiver' or 'referral'. Several studies in the USA demonstrated that transferred offenders are more likely to recidivate, and at a higher rate, and more likely to be rearrested for more serious offences than juveniles retained in the juvenile justice system.
Previous research showed that within a follow-up period of 4 to 6 years, at least half of the transferred youngsters (N=210) relapse into crime within a short time span. In order to gain insight in the question whether the high recidivism rates are caused by intrinsic characteristics of the population, and/or by the impact of the transfer decision, a new (follow-up) research project is proposed. This follow-up research will cover a long-term period of 10 years, and includes both transferred juvenile offenders as a 'reference group' of (non transferred) juvenile offenders. This research is based on a qualitative methodological approach using (1) case file analysis, (2) judicial data analysis as well as (3) interviews with transferred offenders.

Keywords:Sentencing, Pre-Trial Detention, Community Policing, Criminal Policy, Restorative Justice, Criminal Law, Prison Systems, Juvenile Justice, Economic Criminality, Criminal Procedure

Disciplines:Law and legal studies