Wiktionary
n. (context legal English) Participation in illegal behaviour by minors.
WordNet
n. an antisocial misdeed in violation of the law by a minor [syn: delinquency]
Wikipedia
Juvenile delinquency, also known as "juvenile offending", is participation in illegal behavior by minors (juveniles, i.e. individuals younger than the statutory age of majority). Most legal systems prescribe specific procedures for dealing with juveniles, such as juvenile detention centers, and courts. A juvenile delinquent in the United States is a person who is typically below 18 (17 in New York, North Carolina, New Hampshire, and Texas) years of age and commits an act that otherwise would have been charged as a crime if they were an adult. Depending on the type and severity of the offense committed, it is possible for people under 18 to be charged and treated as adults.
In recent years a higher proportion of youth have experienced arrests by their early 20s than in the past, although some scholars have concluded this may reflect more aggressive criminal justice and zero-tolerance policies rather than changes in youth behavior. Juvenile crimes can range from status offenses (such as underage smoking), to property crimes and violent crimes. Youth violence rates in the United States have dropped to approximately 12% of peak rates in 1993 according to official US government statistics, suggesting that most juvenile offending is non-violent. However, juvenile offending can be considered normative adolescent behavior. This is because most teens tend to offend by committing non-violent crimes, only once or a few times, and only during adolescence. Repeated and/or violent offending is likely to lead to later and more violent offenses. When this happens, the offender often displayed antisocial behavior even before reaching adolescence.
Usage examples of "juvenile delinquency".
Obviously, the juvenile delinquency in some New York City public schools is disgraceful and dangerousbut to tackle the matter by searching for minute flaws in teenage trade books strikes me as silly and as inappropriate as treating cancer with hair tonic.
Biswas had lain and written his formal acceptance of the post of Community Welfare Officer, seeing the destitute's dining-table still stacked with books on sociology, village reconstruction in India, cottage industries and juvenile delinquency.
Obviously, the juvenile delinquency in some New York City public schools is disgraceful and dangerous-but to tackle the matter by searching for minute flaws in teenage trade books strikes me as silly and as inappropriate as treating cancer with hair tonic.
Truancy could lead to juvenile delinquency, as was well known by every mother worth her Parents magazine subscription.
And the lack of juvenile delinquency - for years, Millville had been proud that its juvenile delinquency had been a minor problem.
I sometimes wonder if something like that wouldn't clear up juvenile delinquency.
He had had a few years' experience as a police chief in Lawrence, Kansas, but he had spent most of his adult life in college classrooms, lecturing students on sociology and juvenile delinquency.
He was purportedly an authority on juvenile delinquency and had written two books on the subject that were used as texts in a dozen colleges.
The editor says that juvenile delinquency is getting worse and something must be done to stop it.
In City Hall the District Attorney was blaming the current wave of juvenile delinquency on television and the movies.
A local theatre-owner was blaming the current wave of juvenile delinquency on the negligence of the District Attorney.
She had a passion for crusading, and she felt that with a newspaper at her command she could do tremendous things to defeat juvenile delinquency, the drug traffic, comic books, immodest bathing suits and other evils which were gnawing at the foundations of society.
Narrowly escaping a promising career of juvenile delinquency in Virginia Beach by being force-marched to Pennsylvania at the tender age of fifteen, where I shortly thereafter met John Skipp and began the series of creative mutations that led me to where I am today.
Santaroga officials said they had no juvenile delinquency figures for the state's statistics.