The Triple-C Impact: Responding to Childhood Exposure to Crime and Violence

Abstract

FALLING BETWEEN THE CRACKS 909 behavioral problems, repeat victimization, 5 juvenile delinquency, 6 adult criminality , 7 and substance abuse. 8 In 2012, the Attorney General Task Force on Children Exposed to Violence declared the problem as "a national crisis and a threat to the health and well-being of our nation's children and of our country." 9 Others have described it as one of the most costly public health and public safety problems in the United States today. 10 Despite the severity of childhood exposure to crime and violence, and the increased attention given to its various components, thus far there are almost no studies or policy analyses that take an inclusive look at the problem as a whole. Most available studies focus exclusively on one isolated form of exposure. 11 Indirect forms of childhood exposure to crime and their effects are often ignored or narrowly defined. This segmented and compartmentalized approach, which avoids properly defining and "naming" the problem, has prevented us from gaining a true understanding of its full scope, effect, and gravity. It has also hindered our ability to more accurately estimate the full cost of the problem to the state and to our society. Unsurprisingly, the