what do u think about the use of "discretion" by law enforcement in dealing with juvenile offenders.

Question

... I'm really looking for people who are defending it, I just need a little help in what I could use in my essay. Thanks.

Answer 1

Speaking as someone who spent 3+ years with the Air Force Security Police, I can tell you that the job of a law enforcement officer is VERY difficult. You never know what to expect. Your job is to serve and protect, but the first rule of law enforcement is protect yourself. There are so many people out there who would not think twice about killing or assaulting a police officer (many of them are juveniles) and any time you come across someone who is under the influence of alcohol or illegal drugs you have to be very careful because these people (again, many of them are juveniles) are unpredictable.

It's so hard to explain because you really have to do the job in order to understand what it's like, and that's why I get so torqued when armchair cops try to tell the real police officers how to do their jobs. You don't know how you'll react to a certain situation or how you'll deal with it until you have to, and the best person to decide how a situation should be handled is a law enforcement officer who has been extensively trained on how to handle these situations. Police officers never WANT to use weapons or get into a physical altercation with someone, but in many cases their choices are limited to (a) Use a weapon to defend themselves, or (b) Get injured, maimed or killed by a violent and/or armed assailant. I do not like pulling out my service pistol and pointing it at someone because I know that I could kill that person, but that's exactly what I did after pulling over a car that did not stop at the main gate and I noticed the driver had a pistol tucked between his seat and the center console. He put his hands up and did everything I told him to do (thank God) but if he had gone for that gun I would have shot him.

BOTTOM LINE: Police officers MUST be given a certain amount of leeway when dealing with any offender. Yes, there are crooked cops, but they make up less than 1% of the total force. The rest of the law enforcement officers have proven that they are worthy of the public trust and have been taught how to handle most situations, so they should be trusted to make decisions that are appropriate for the circumstances.

Answer 2

Descretion is vital in the juvenile offender area of law enforcement. Some juvinile offenders are first-timers and just made an error in judgement. Others are clearly on the path to a lifetime career of crime. This is where discretion is, and quite rightly, used.

Answer 3

The juvie system, unlike the adult system (even though it claims to be), is based on rehabilitation. So, in that context, the discretion principle makes sense -- especially for an 10-12 year old who probably technically lacks the mens rea necessary to truly be convicted on the crime. What child really understands the complete consequences of their actions? They know that when you hit someone that it hurts then, but do they know that if you hit someone just one time in the right place that it can kill them? I don't think so. Children also do not have complete control of their emotions, are more prone to act out and are largely influenced by their environment.

That being said, I have mixed feelings about the juvie system. Yes, let's rehabilitate, of course. We don't want another kid who will grow up to spend his or her life in and out of jail. But how do we do it? By being strict, by being compassionate? Unfortunately, there is no one size fits all method, and a lot of mistakes are made, especially when the system is as underfunded and overloaded as it is.

I could go on, but it would be to more criticism, and I'm sure that you can think of all of those -- re-offender rates, slaps on the wrists, etc.