Crime Causation and Diversion Paper

Crime Causation and Diversion in Mississippi

Introduction

Juvenile diversion refers to interventions taken to take youths away from following the formal juvenile system processes but they are still accountable for what they committed. The aim of juvenile diversion is to minimize the labeling on youths as criminals or offenders once they are convicted. It is also meant to reduce the contact with the serious offenders who may expose them to other criminal acts (National Center for Mental Health and Juvenile Justice, 2016). It is also important for young age offenders so that they do not get separated from their family members. Juvenile diversion targets those with less serious criminal acts (Wilson, H. A., & Hoge, R. D., 2013). This then saves the resources such as time, money and human resource which become available to be applied on more serious offenses. In some cases, juvenile diversion can apply to serious offenses. In such cases, the offender suffers from mental illnesses and any other with psychological needs.

The type of juvenile diversion intervention applied vary among offenders. As stated earlier, the interventions can apply to both high risk and low risk offenders. It, therefore, depends on the age, the circumstances that led to the act and the mental state among other things. However, the overall aim of juvenile diversion is to correct the offender without having to follow the normal juvenile court proceedings. The Mississippi states uses two models that draw strategies juvenile diversion intervention. These models are:

The probation-intake diversion model

The school-based diversion model

School-based Diversion Model

The model targets the youth with mental health needs. Studies have shown that mentally ill individuals are more likely to commit crimes and come in contact with juvenile court processes. The models is applied in schools because this is where many youth are found and teachers can be trained to