What they don’t know can hurt them: Mothers’ legal knowledge and youth re-offending.

Cavanagh, Caitlin; Cauffman, Elizabeth

doi:10.1037/law0000112

Cited by 29 publications

(44 citation statements)

References 43 publications

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“…The researchers interviewed mothers of youth who had recently been arrested for the first time and asked a series of 44 items (mostly true or false) about the juvenile system as a whole. Mothers, on average, answered only 66% of questions correctly, including only 20%-29% correctly answered questions about plea deals and a probation officer's roles and duties (Cavanagh & Cauffman, 2017). This document is copyrighted by the American Psychological Association or one of its allied publishers.…”

Section: Parents' Legal Knowledgementioning

confidence: 99%

Lesson learned? Mothers’ legal knowledge and juvenile rearrests.

Cavanagh¹,

Paruk²,

Cauffman³

2020

Law and Human Behavior

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Objective: The present study examined how mothers' personal characteristics, experience with, and attitudes toward the juvenile justice system are associated with their knowledge of the juvenile justice system over time. Hypotheses: We hypothesized that additional exposure to the system (via sons' rearrests) would be associated with greater legal knowledge. We predicted that White women, women with higher educational attainment, and women who had been arrested would experience greater gains in legal knowledge over time, relative to non-White women, women with lower educational attainment, and women who had not been arrested. Finally, we predicted that mothers' attitudes toward the legitimacy of the justice system would not be associated with their change in legal knowledge. Method: Mothers (N ϭ 234) of male youth (majority non-White) completed a questionnaire of their knowledge about the juvenile justice system after their sons' 1st arrest (T1) and again 2.5 years later (T2). Results: Knowledge did not improve over time, regardless of whether the youth was rearrested. Black mothers displayed less knowledge of the juvenile justice system when their sons were rearrested multiple times. Attitudes toward the justice system were not associated with legal knowledge. Conclusions: These results illustrate the importance of a family educational component to juvenile probation, especially as a vehicle to reduce disproportionate minority contact with the juvenile justice system. Public Significance StatementEducating families about their rights and responsibilities in the juvenile justice system could reduce racial and ethnic disparities in juvenile justice system contact. Black women whose sons were rearrested several times displayed less legal knowledge over time. These results suggest that continued exposure to the juvenile justice system is not associated with greater knowledge of the system and may be associated with existing racial and ethnic disparities within the court. Education in areas of persistent deficits in legal knowledge (the roles of probation officers and attorneys, youth plea decisions) may be particularly useful.

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Section: Parents' Legal Knowledgementioning

confidence: 99%

Lesson learned? Mothers’ legal knowledge and juvenile rearrests.

Cavanagh¹,

Paruk²,

Cauffman³

2020

Law and Human Behavior

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“…Probation officers may rely on guardians' reports of their children's friends in order to assess whether the youth associates with delinquent peers. However, because guardians' understanding of the juvenile justice system is limited (Cavanagh & Cauffman, 2016), guardians may not understand that revealing that their child has delinquent friends may result in harsher processing.…”

Section: Contextual Extralegal Factorsmentioning

confidence: 99%

And justice for all: Determinants and effects of probation officers’ processing decisions regarding first-time juvenile offenders.

Fine

Donley

Cavanagh

et al. 2017

Psychology, Public Policy, and Law

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When a youth is accused of committing a crime, juvenile justice system arbiters, such as probation officers, interview both the youth and the youth's guardian to gather information before deciding to either process the youth formally or informally. Factors about a youth that are unrelated to the criminal charge may contribute to arbiters' processing decisions. Such extralegal factors include demographic characteristics and characteristics of the youth's context (e.g., home environment, peer delinquency). Little is known about how extralegal factors other than age and race affect youth processing. The present study draws on data from probation officer assessment interviews with 359 male, first-time, low-level juvenile offenders, as well as longitudinal self-report and official records of a youth's reoffending after his first arrest, to determine how extralegal factors affect probation processing decisions, and whether processing is associated with youth reoffending and rearrest. The results indicate that even after taking into account legal factors and demographic characteristics, youth are more likely to be processed formally if they refuse to comment on the charge, if their probation officers believe their guardians to be relatively more disapproving of their friends, and if their probation officers perceive their home environments to be more problematic. Although youth who are processed formally self-report reoffending at the same rate as youth who are processed informally, youth who are processed formally are more likely to be rearrested in the subsequent 6 months. Implications for how processing decisions may promote sustained involvement in the juvenile justice system are discussed.

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“…Similarly, lawyers may want to ensure parents agree with the terms of the negotiated plea to increase the chance their client is successful. A recent study showed that justice-involved youth whose mothers were more engaged in their disposition (e.g., by meeting with their child's probation officer or helping to arrange probationary requirements) tend to report lower levels of reoffending (Cavanagh & Cauffman, 2017). Whereas the defense attorney's responsibility is to the child, not their parents, they may feel compelled to account for the parent's interests if they initially disagree to support their client in meeting the terms of their negotiated disposition.…”

Section: Parental Involvement In the Plea Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Negotiating with parents: Attorney practices in the juvenile plea bargain process.

Fountain¹,

Woolard²

2021

Law and Human Behavior

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Objectives: Research on plea bargaining is increasing, yet much of this work examines how the process unfolds in adult court. Plea bargaining in juvenile court has several notable differences such as parental involvement. Including parents throughout the adjudicatory process is encouraged but ultimately left up to the attorney. Research has not explored whether attorneys include parents in plea bargain discussions with their clients. The present study examined parental involvement in the juvenile plea bargain process. Hypotheses: We did not have any formal a priori hypotheses for this exploratory study. Method: The first author conducted qualitative interviews with eighteen defense attorneys from the juvenile division of a public defender's office on the East Coast where we discussed their most recent case that resulted in a plea bargain. Results: Parents were included in plea negotiations and hearings. Attorneys described seeking parental input because parents may be impacted by the terms of the plea and because the court often seeks parental approval. During hearings, parents offered input regarding their child's ability to plea, the disposition plan, and whether they support their child's decision to plead guilty. Conclusions: Pleas might impact parents, so it may be impractical to overlook their interests. However, parent and child interests may conflict, and parents often lack understanding of their children's rights and pleading generally. Therefore, attorneys must not only advocate for their clients, but also educate and manage parents' interests both inside and outside the courtroom. Public Significance StatementInviting parents to offer input on their child's legal decisions and disposition in court was associated with attorneys also considering parents' interests during plea discussions and negotiations. Because youth have a legal right to decide how to plead on their own, future research should consider how parent interests and involvement in plea discussions impacts the knowing, intelligent, and voluntary nature of juvenile plea bargain decisions.

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What they don’t know can hurt them: Mothers’ legal knowledge and youth re-offending.

Cited by 29 publications

References 43 publications

Lesson learned? Mothers’ legal knowledge and juvenile rearrests.

Lesson learned? Mothers’ legal knowledge and juvenile rearrests.

And justice for all: Determinants and effects of probation officers’ processing decisions regarding first-time juvenile offenders.

Negotiating with parents: Attorney practices in the juvenile plea bargain process.

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