Youth serving time in adult prisons are more likely to receive harsher sentences and little or no rehabilitation services, be exposed to violence and victimization, and, ultimately, more likely to face future arrests than similar offenders in the juvenile system, according to research. “Adult time” is on the rise for young offenders. This National Council on Crime and Delinquency report finds that more than 7,000 children are currently in adult jails; in the early 1990s, that number was 2,000. In most cases (85 percent), youth are sent to adult court by the prosecutor or legislature, and not by judicial authority. The report also looks at the various ages at which children are tried as adults, either automatically by their charges, or by the discretion of the courts.
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