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- Title
Is Juvenile Justice System Involvement Context-Dependent?: The Differential Experiences of Older Foster Youth in the Context of Extended Foster Care.
- Authors
Park, Keunhye
- Abstract
Foster youth are at increased risk of entering the justice system, particularly as they age out of foster care. The high prevalence of crime among foster youth has concerned practitioners, researchers, and policymakers. Given the public attention to address the disproportionate rates of juvenile justice system involvement among young people in foster care, this study focuses on the association of the new federal legislation for extending foster care to age 21 with foster youth's juvenile justice system involvement. Drawing from 2006 to 2016 California state child welfare administrative data on individuals in care between their 16th and 18th birthdays (N = 69,140), this study (1) examines whether the extended care policy is associated with reduced juvenile justice system involvement and (2) compares juvenile justice system involvement between 16-year-olds and 17-year-olds during the periods before and after California implemented the extended care policy. The results show that youth approaching the age of majority in foster care were more likely to avoid juvenile justice system involvement after the state implemented the policy controlling for the general declining trend in delinquency petitions within the state, and that this was true for both age cohorts. These findings have national implications because in most states being transferred from the child welfare system to the juvenile justice system before reaching age 18 can result in later ineligibility for extended care available through Title IV-E benefits. Further implications and recommendations for professionals, researchers, and policymakers are provided.
- Subjects
CALIFORNIA; FOSTER home care laws; FOSTER children; HEALTH policy; LEGISLATION; TRANSITION to adulthood; CHILD welfare; COURTS; RESEARCH funding; JUVENILE delinquency; POLITICAL participation; CRIMINAL justice system; FEDERAL government
- Publication
Child & Adolescent Social Work Journal, 2024, Vol 41, Issue 1, p107
- ISSN
0738-0151
- Publication type
Article
- DOI
10.1007/s10560-022-00840-w