The Impact of Gender on the Processing of Probation Violations and Contempt: A Study of One Juvenile Court

Authors

  • M. Dyan McGuire M. Dyan McGuire, J.D., Ph.D. Associate Professor of Criminal Justice Saint Louis University 3500 Lindell Blvd, Rm 325 Tegler Hall St. Louis, MO 63103 USA Phone 314 977-2191 or 314 283 3886 mcguired@slu.edu
  • Noelle Fearn Noelle Fearn, Ph.D. Associate Professor of Criminal Justice Saint Louis University 3500 Lindell Blvd. St. Louis, MO 63103 USA
  • Kathryn Kuhn Kathryn Kuhn, Ph.D. Associate Professor of Sociology Saint Louis University 3550 Lindell Blvd. St. Louis, MO 63108 USA
  • Kenneth Mayo Research Analyst Family Court, 22nd Judicial Circuit 10 N. Tucker Blvd St. Louis, Missouri 63101

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.18533/ijbsr.v3i11.314

Keywords:

juvenile, gender, court order violators, probation violators

Abstract

There is substantial evidence to suggest that in at least some contexts juvenile court judges are circumventing the proscription contained in the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act (“JJDPA”), which prohibits the secure confinement of status offenders, by securely detaining status offenders for contempt.  Some evidence also indicates that gender may influence whether a juvenile is detained as a result of violating a valid court order.  This study seeks to expand existing research by examining what happens to court order violators beyond detention and by explicitly comparing the treatment of court order violators with the treatment of probation violators in terms of detention, adjudication and confinement to shed light on how gender influences these decision points.  While high rates of detention and commitment were uncovered, these results do not suggest that females were more likely to experience these consequences than males. 

Author Biography

  • M. Dyan McGuire, M. Dyan McGuire, J.D., Ph.D. Associate Professor of Criminal Justice Saint Louis University 3500 Lindell Blvd, Rm 325 Tegler Hall St. Louis, MO 63103 USA Phone 314 977-2191 or 314 283 3886 mcguired@slu.edu

     M. Dyan  McGuire, Ph.D, J.D. is an associate professor of criminal justice at Saint Louis University. She has been on the faculty at SLU since 2001.  Prior to entering academia, she worked as a prosecutor, criminal defense attorney and judicial clerk.  Her research interests include race and sex discrimination within the criminal justice system and violence as it impacts upon women both as victims and perpetrators.

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Published

2013-12-09

Issue

Vol. 3 No. 11 (2013): November

Section

Article

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