Neha Dhiman, LLB, Campus Law Centre, University of Delhi
ABSTRACT
Long-standing debates among connoisseurs, intellects, and the public on what causes minors to commit crimes seem to be never-ending. Every day we read or hear of crimes committed by children of tender age unacquainted with the associated consequences. The seriousness of juvenile crimes has captured public attention. The dilemma of what should be the attitude of society towards these offenders has always existed and it still influences the operation of juvenile courts. What are the social factors or psychological patterns followed by these children? What crimes are committed by youths who are then tried in adult courts? Whether these young people have full control over their behavior? What should be the extent of culpability for a child who is a drug dealer or a sexual offender or a homicide offender? What relative laws are operating in the country or the world? Or what approach should be followed by law-making authorities towards juvenile offenders, means to say how reformative or punitive it should be? And, how common is the onset of offending during early childhood? This paper focuses on the children of age period between adolescence and early adulthood and it addresses the offending careers from juvenile to the adult years. It examines one’s response to social, environmental, and other factors as a juvenile. The paper considers the factors that drive their behavior toward the crime and repeats them many times and also how the juvenile justice system operates in the country.
Keywords: Juvenile, Delinquency, Childhood, Influences, Juvenile Justice.
