Juvenile Deliquency -By Abubakar Eugenia Ojoma

Introduction

Juvenile deliquency is the engagement of minors in illegal or antisocial acts. Understanding it causes and effects is the key to prevention, rehabilitation and promoting positive youth development.

In the classical era they were no legal distinctions between adult and juvenile offenders, the neoclassical school of criminology however recognized extenuating circumstances of a person who committed a crime, and one of such circumstances was the age of the accused. A juvenile is therefore defined in terms of age as to wether an individual falls in the legal category of a child or a young person. The children and young persons act, defines a child as a young person under fourteen years of age, while a young person is someone who falls between fourteen and seventeen years of age.

According to Black law dictionary, a juvenile is a person who has no attained the age at which the law permits full participation in public life, such as voting or criminal responsibility. Emile Durkhein views juveniles as individuals in the transitional stage between childhood and adulthood, whose moral and social values are still being shaped by the society.

Furthermore, the United nations standard minimum Rules for the Administration of juvenile justice (The Beijing Rules 1985) , a juvenile is a child or young person who under the respective legal systems,  maybe dealt with for an offence in a manner which is different from an adult.

Edwin H Sutherland, defines a juvenile as a young person whose patterns of behavior are not fully developed, making them more susceptible to environmental influences and social learning.

The common law exempts a child under ten years of age from criminal liability under the presumption of doli incapax. The proof of the actus reus and mens rea regarding the criminal act of such a person was immaterial, because there was no criminal responsibility. In addition the criminal responsibility of a child between ten and fourteen years must not be backed by only elements of crime but also what has been referred to as ” mischievous discretion”. Under the common law therefore, a person above fourteen years has been presumed to be responsible and entirely accountable for his actions and misdeeds as if he were forty.

The children and young persons Act, is one of Nigeria’s earliest child and juvenile justice laws . It was originally introduced during the colonial era around 1943 and later adopted by various regions and States. The act provides the legal framework for handling children and young persons below 18 years, who are either in need of care and protection, or accused or found guilty of committing an offence. The act aims at the protection of children from abuse, neglect, exploitation, reform and rehabilitation rather than punish juvenile offenders, separate juvenile offenders from adult criminals to prevent negative influences. Ensure fair treatment of minors who come in conflict with the law.

The act further provides, for special courts ( juvenile courts) to handle offences committed by children and young persons, proceedings are to be private and informal protecting the child’s identity and dignity. The act equally recognizes that minors have less criminal responsibility, and thus should not be treated like adults. The acts prohibits death penalty or life imprisonment for children, it also forbids detaining of minors in adult prisons or correctional centres, directing they be placed on approved schools, remand homes, or borstal institutions.

Correctional measures are intended to reform character and reintegrate the youth into the society. Allow authorities to take a child away from abuse or neglectful environments, protect children at risk of turning to crime because of poverty and lack of parental care. While the child Right Act 2003 is the current and national standard, the continued existence of the children and young persons Act, in some states it is still applied in legal scenarios involving children, particularly regarding juvenile justice, bail and in some cases, detention in remand homes or borstal institutions.

Juvenile deliquency refers to criminal or antisocial behavior committed by persons under the age of eighteen. It involves acts that violates the law or social norms, such as stealing, truancy, drug abuse, cultism, or cybercrime.

Tappan ( 1949) , defines juvenile deliquency as an act committed by a child or youth under a certain age, which violates the criminal law, and for which the juvenile is declared deliquent by a court. Cyril Burt (1925), defines it as a behaviour by children and adolescents which, if committed by an adult would be considered a crime.

From the above definition it is clear that an offender who is a child or a young person is not referred to as an accused person, rather he or she is referred to as a juvenile deliquent. While precise up to date national figures for juvenile deliquency in Nigeria are unavailable, a 2022 report estimated that around 6,000 children were within the criminal justice system.

CAUSES OF JUVENILE DELIQUENCY

The causes of juvenile deliquency are multiple they included, poverty, peer pressure, parental neglect, parental limitations, genetic or biological factor, poor education, government failures, child abuse, influence of technology and social media, Divorce, Break down of law and order, illegal access to firearms, mental disorder or unsoundness of the mind, influence of contacts with deliquents, Environmental influences, cultism, Drug abuse, Extreme economic deprivation, Rebelliousness, community laws and norms, Early and persistent antisocial behaviour, Academic failures, Depression, Unemployment, Teenage pregnancy, Gender discrimination, population growth.

Physical neglect, includes abandonment from home or expulsion from home.

The juvenile offending unit of the British home office identifies key factors related to deliquency

* Male children are more likely to exhibit deliquent behaviour than female children.

* Children brought up by criminal parents

* Children living in a family with multiple problems

* The truant child

* Children experiencing poor parenting and lack of supervision

* Children associating or having deliquent friends, or having siblings who are deliquent

In addition the deliquent child is viewed or subjected to the commitment of two types of crimes or offences. Adult crimes, such as murder, robbery, rape, theft, fraud, and offences created by statues, that is those activities that would not be regarded as criminal if committed by an adult. Such as truancy, drinking, alcohol so on.

Effects of juvenile deliquency on the society.

Increase in crime rate, Threat to public safety, Wastage of human potential, Emotional and economic burden on families and communities, Economic burden on the nation, Poor education outcome, Increase in unemployment and poverty, Growth of adult criminality, Negative international image.

Furthermore, even where judicial precedent are few on the exact point, the statutory and judicial provision are clear , section 204 of the child Right Act, provides that children ( persons under 18) must be dealt with only within the child – justice system, not the adult criminal justice system. Also in modupe v. The state (1988) 4 NWLR ( pt.87) 130 (SC), the supreme Court held that a juvenile who was under 17 at the time of committing a capital offense cannot be sentenced to death, and that it is wrong for any court to pronounce or record such a sentence against someone under that age. Instead the correct course is the detention at the pleasure of the governor.

See also the case of Guobadia v. The state (2004) 6 NWLR (pt.869) 360, the court of appeal held that where age is a material issue in a juvenile matter, the court must make due enquiry into the age of the accused ( e .g by evidence of birth records or other proof). In addition the Nigerian courts routinely look at international standards and constitutional principles to interpret domestic laws. The United nations convention on the rights of the child ( CRC ) Article 37, requires that children deprived of liberty be separated from adults, unless exceptional circumstances apply. Likewise the Beijing Rules ( United nations standard minimum rules for juvenile justice), these rules require separate detention for juvenile From adults.

Ways to address juvenile deliquency

Strengthening family: parenting education to foster healthy family environments, Educational youth programs: expanding access to quality education, vocational training, and after school program, policy support services: improve funding and implementation of juvenile rehabilitation and counseling services, strong government policies and enforcement of full implementation of the child Right Act and children and young persons Act.also adequate funding of remand homes, borstal and rehabilitation centres, media regulation and awareness, public campaign on the dangers of juvenile deliquency, skill acquisition, poverty reduction and creation of employment opportunities by the government, proper use of juvenile justice system, incocation of morals by religious leaders, quality education and school support, access to free and complusory basic education, Schools should provide guidance and counseling services, early identification of at- risk student and intervention can prevent deliquent behaviour.

In conclusion

Juvenile deliquency remains a complex, multi- faceted challenge driven by poverty, family instability, peer influences, and educational barriers.it affect not only individual youth development but also national social stability and economic progress. Effective solutions requires coordinated efforts among families, schools, communities, and government agencies to create supportive environments and address root causes.

References

* A.B Dambazau ( criminology and criminal justice )

* National open university, journal on juvenile institutions and juvenile corrections in Nigeria.

Abubakar Eugenia Ojoma
Law student, faculty of law ABU Zaria.