Status Offenders in the Juvenile Court: The Effects of Gender, Race, and Ethnicity on the Adjudication Decision

Abstract

Prior research has suggested that female status offenders are often treated more harshly than male status offenders in juvenile court processing. This finding is often explained by the traditional role perspective which suggests that the juvenile court is attempting to protect the sexuality of girls. In addition, there is theoretical and empirical evidence that the effect of gender may vary by race/ethnicity. This study examines the joint effects of gender and race/ethnicity in the adjudication of status offenders. The findings suggests that Native American boys are the most likely to be adjudicated followed by Black girls and Hispanic girls. Examination of the treatment of girls separately found that White females were the least likely to be adjudicated and Hispanic girls were significantly more likely than White girls to be adjudicated. For males, Native Americans, followed by Hispanic males, were the most likely to be adjudicated. Implications of the results are further discussed.