Transcript Education, Disability, and Juvenile Justice

Examining the Costs and
Benefits of Effective Juvenile
Delinquency Programs for
Youth with BD
Jeffrey Poirier, Mindee O’Cummings,
and Mary Quinn
American Institutes for Research
National Center on Education, Disability, and
Juvenile Justice (EDJJ)
Why Prevention?
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An 18 year old is five times more likely to
be arrested for a property crime than a 35
year old
In 1997, 15-19 year olds comprised 7% of
the overall population but 1 out 5 arrests
for violent offenses and 1 out of 3 property
crime arrests
Overall, teenagers are responsible for 2030% of all crime
Source: National Bureau of Economic Research, 1999
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School Failure Theory
Delinquent behavior is a secondary
result of the disability.
 The
disability is thought to lead to
school failure
 Poor sense of self contributes to
behavior causing consequences
(e.g., school suspension)
 Unstructured time offers many
opportunities for delinquent
behavior
Murray, 1977; Post, 1981
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Susceptibility Theory
Delinquency stems from behaviors
that are a direct result of the
defining characteristics of the
disability
 Characteristics
(personal traits,
cognitive deficits) lead to lack of
impulse control, suggestibility, and
poor social perception
 Increased risk for delinquent
behavior
(Keilitz & Dunnivant, 1987; Murray, 1977)
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Metacognitive Deficits Theory
As a result of the disability, the student
lacks the interpersonal skills
necessary to build relationships with
his or her peers
 To
gain social status, these students
engage in behaviors to impress their
peers, including delinquent behaviors
(Larson, 1988; 1998; Larson & Turner, 2002)
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Differential Treatment Theory
Youth with disabilities commit as
many delinquent acts youth without
disabilities
 Certain
personality traits that result
from their disability cause these
youth to frustrate authority figures
 Miscommunication often results in
harsher treatments
 Outcome: overrepresentation
(Keilitz & Dunivant, 1987; Leone & Meisel, 1997)
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What are we preventing?
Left to progress without appropriate
treatment, these children with
behavior disorders are at
heightened risk for:
 Serious
mental health problems;
 Substance abuse;
 Educational failure, including
truancy and delinquency; and
 Encounters with the juvenile justice
system.
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Serious Mental Health Problems/
Substance Abuse
Research supports that children with
mental health problems are at risk for
 Unemployment
or underemployment
 In unhealthy relationships, including
broken marriages
 Other mental problems (e.g.,
schizophrenia, hyperactivity,
obsessional disorders, depression,
substance abuse)
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Levels of Prevention
Tertiary
Secondary
Primary
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Mental Health Service Provisions
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Negligence- lack of services/ no
recognized need
Skimping- inadequate services/
intentions to save money
Supplier induced demand- provision of
unnecessary services/ intention to make
money
Indulgence- too many and often
unnecessary services provided based on
family insistence
(Matthews, 1991)
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Serious Mental Health Problems/
Substance Abuse (cont.)
Children with mental health problems
are often un- or under-served
 20%
of children have DSM disorders
 10% of children have DSM disorders
that significantly impair their
functioning
 5% of children receive care for
mental health problems
 1-2% receive services in specialty
settings
(Castello, Burns, Argold, & Leaf, 1993)
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Educational Failure Risks
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51.4% of children EB/D dropped
out of school, as compared to the
national average of 10.7% of
children
Unemployment rates for high
school drop outs is 60% higher
than graduates
When adults without high school
degrees, over 30% earn less then
the official poverty rate
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Juvenile Justice System
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Research has found that youth
with EB/D are disproportionately
involved with the juvenile justice
system
 8%
of all those in facilities have
SLD, accounting for 42% of those
with disabilities
 8% of all those in facilities have
EB/D, accounting for 40% of those
with disabilities
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Why examine costs and benefits?
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Program evaluation
Influence policymakers and global
change
Decreased funding requires the
more efficient and prudent use of
allocated funds
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Cost of Substance
Abuse
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Substance abuse is very costly:
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“Every sector of society spends
hefty sums of money shoveling up
the wreckage of substance abuse
and addiction.”

In 1998 more than 13% of state
budgets ($81.3 billion) was spent on
substance abuse
Of this amount, only 3.7 cents of
each state dollar was spent on
prevention or research

Source: CASA, Columbia University, 2001
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Cost of Substance
Abuse
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Two-thirds of juvenile justice costs were
related to youth substance abuse
Source: CASA, Columbia University, 2001
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Costs of Delinquency
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Important to examine costs as a
consequence of non-prevention
of BD
2.4 million juvenile arrests in 2000
(Snyder, 2002)
Juveniles accounted for 9%
(murders) to 33% (burglaries) of
all arrests for various types of
crime in 2000
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Types of Costs
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Juvenile justice/corrections
Lost property and wages
Medical and psychological expenses
Decreased productivity
Pain and suffering
Decreased quality of life/societal wellbeing (e.g., fear of crime, changing
lifestyle due to risk of victimization)
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Opportunity Costs
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Since expenditures allocated to
delinquency-related costs, fewer
resources are available for
education/other government
services
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Who incurs these
costs?
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Victims
Government agencies
Taxpayers
Society
Delinquent youth
Families
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Victimization Costs
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23% of all U.S. households victimized
Crime victims lost $17.6 billion in direct
costs in 1992 (includes losses from
property theft/damage, cash losses,
medical expenses, and amount of pay
lost because of injury/activities related
to the crime)
Loss of life is not included in this
estimate
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, National Crime Victimization
Survey, 1994
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Expenditures for the Criminal
and Civil Justice System
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Total: $147 billion in 1999 (police
protection, corrections, and
judicial/legal activities)
309% increase from 1982-1999
Local government funded half of
these expenses (note: local
government funded 44% of
education costs in 1999)
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, 1999
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Expenditures for the Criminal
and Civil Justice System
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States contributed another 39% ($4.4
billion in 2000; CASA, 2002)
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Criminal and civil justice
expenditures comprised 7.7% of all
state and local expenditures
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, 1999
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Costs of Juvenile Crime
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Cost of juvenile crime:
 Victim costs: $62,000-$250,000
 Criminal justice: $21,000-$84,000
 Total: $83,000-$335,000
 For every 10 crimes committed, only
one is caught
 Chronic juvenile offenders are very
likely to become involved in the adult
system
Source: Cohen, Journal of Quantitative Criminology, 1998
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Costs of Dropping
Out
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In 1991, annual cost of providing for
youth who fail to complete high
school and their families: $76 billion
Lost wage productivity: $300,000
Source: Joint Economic Committee, 1991
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Cost-Benefits of Effective
Prevention and Intervention
Source: Washington State Institute for Public Policy, 2001
Program
Net Cost
per
Participant
Taxpayer
Savings
Taxpayer
Savings
and Victim
Benefits
Benefit-toCost Ratio
Early Childhood
Education for
Disadvantaged Youth
$8,936
-$4,754
$6,972
$1.78
Quantum
Opportunities
Program
$18,964
-$8,855
$16,428
$1.87
Multidimensional
Treatment Foster
Care
$2,052
$21,836
$87,622
$43.70
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The Costs of Crime for Juvenile
Offenders
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Separation and isolation
In correctional settings:
 Negative behaviors are often reinforced
 Higher rates of sexual victimization and
suicide
 For youth with cognitive disabilities, it is
difficult to un-learn the prison
experience
 Lack of special education services and
an absence of skill-based programming
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The Cost of Ignoring Families
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Family involvement (surrogates,
extended family, etc.) and stability
are critical to the success of
prevention and corrections programs
When parents do not have the
skills/knowledge to advocate for
their child’s learning/mental health
needs, their children are more likely
to drop out of school and become
involved in the justice system
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Parent Training
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Costs
 $500/year
per family for instruction
and supplies
 $2500/year per family for program
management
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Benefits
 157
serious crimes prevented per
million dollars spent
Source: RAND, 1996
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High/Scope
Preschool Programs
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Benefits
 fewer
acts of misconduct
 higher grade point averages
 higher rates of employment
 lower rates of welfare dependence
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High/Scope
Preschool Programs
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Costs
 $39,278
per child
 $964 increased need for funds for
secondary education programs
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Savings
 reduced
need for special education
 reduced crime rate
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Comparison of Number of Prevented
Serious Crimes per Million Dollars
300
258
250
200
150
157
100
50
0
72
11
Home Visits
Parent Training
H.S. Graduation Incentives
Delinquency Programs
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Conclusion
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Prevention/intervention programs
for at-risk youth will not eliminate
juvenile crime, but can reduce it and
will bring net benefits to both
society and the juvenile
Have a long-term vision when
considering the costs of prevention
programs
Consider the impact of incarceration
on juvenile offenders and youth with
BD
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