Show Check Juvenile Crime Before It Gets Sf rf State Expert Advises I I Editors Editor's note not This h b the he first or of a series or of articles b by a Tele ram staff starr writer on Utah's Juvenile crime I lem C in An ounce of prevention pre is worth wortha a pound of cure Brigham H. H Robinson secretary of the state juvenile court commission Saturday cited that adage noc as the best I path to follow in solving Utah Utah's ju ju- venue crime problem It should not be a problem of how to reclaim a youth he said but rather how to prevent a youth from becoming delinquent Every ery church school and recreational or organization should realize that present methods have failed to curb juvenile delinquency he pointed out and Hun flung a challenge at these organizations organizations or- or to draft a program dc signed to offset the tide ot of delinquency delin delin- quency by giving youth a wholesome ome outlet for its energy Contrary to popular belief beliet the depression de- de has cut down juvenile de according to Mr Robinson Robin Robin- son Eon Juvenile court records for the thelast thelast last few years reflect a material urn urn- t in the behavior attitudes and actions ot of the juvenile ion tion of Utah he said We can attribute at tribute this to no other cause than that the depression has had a vcr very evident sobering influence on the conduct o of youth Juvenile court records Mr Robinson Robin Robin- son explained do not offer a complete picture of the thc delinquency problem since many cases ot of delinquency arc dealt with by other agencies l never reaching the courts Many other juvenile juve juve- nile offenders are not apprehended i However he said cald court records are the best bes barometer of the problem Delinquency cas cases cc handled by the juvenile court durin the fiscal year ending June 30 1933 showed a de crease of 13 per cent under the total for the preceding fIscal year and 18 per cent under the year six average This trend Mr Robinson said is similar simi simi- lar to that in other states and for the nation lS as a whole Only n a fractional part of df the cases of dependencY and nc neglect reach the juvenile courts Mr Robinson ex cx Most ot of the courts work is concerned with problems of definite delinquency Court records show a again again gain ot of 15 per pcr cent in number of de de- and neglect cases casc within the C fiscal cal year covered co by the report and end ending In June 30 1933 In only two of oC 10 classifications under un der which juvenile delinquency cases are arc listed were increases noted However How How- ever evor the total of the these c two truancy and sex oct offenses were well below Continued OR rue lre Two J EXPERT ADVISES ON YOUTH CRIME Churches Schools Challenged to Draft Program to Offset Delinquency Continued front from Pare Page One the s year six average Mr Robinson reported 87 Sent to Institutions A reduction of 16 per cent In the number or of institutional placements was shown In the report In only 87 of 2206 cases did the courts decide that commitment to a correctional institution was needed utah juvenile records bear out the old statement that delinquency is a problem of adolescence II Mr Robinson said paid The greater number ol of delinquencies occur between the ages ot of 13 and 17 the being the peak year Utah records disclosed Forty pe cent ot of court appearances are arc on charles charges of theft 20 per cent because or of ads acs ot of mischief or carelessness care care- 15 per cent as a result of persistent truancy and the remaining re re- 25 per cent for other causes Probation Tendency Shown A tendency In recent years away from institutional detention and toward to ward release on probation In treat ment ot of juvenile delinquents is plain ly shown in commission records During Dur ur ing the year ending June 30 1929 there were youthful committed to institutions and re leased on probation Three years later during the fiscal year ending June 30 1932 Institutional place ments had declined to and probation proba tion cases increased to 1069 Substitution or of the probation plan 1 for or Institutional confinement has hai S saved the state approximately annually in recent years ears Mr RobInson estimated A survey ot of the state showed that tha I j in the year ear ending June 30 1929 cases requIred detention care outside their own homes In the year ending June 30 l 1932 32 only cases required I any type ot of detention outside cir theL r own homes Approximately 85 per cent of the th juvenIles juvenIles' held lor court l lare are permitted to return to their own 1 homes pending disposition of t r cases The other 15 per cent are placed place I in other private homes or held in inome i some ome detention institution I |