Juvenile Court Law in Maryland - An Analysis of the Evolving State-Individual Relationship

• NCJ Number: 85626
• Author(s): K J Block
• Date Published: 1981
• Length: 261 pages
• Sale Source: UMI Dissertation Services
• Publication Type: Thesis/Dissertation
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America
• Note: *This document is currently unavailable from NCJRS. University of Maryland - doctoral dissertation

Annotation

This study examines Maryland's juvenile court law to determine if, according to the principles of game strategy, there is a balance in the power resources received by the State and the individual juvenile.

Abstract

The data base was Maryland's Annotated Code Sections on Juvenile Causes of 1947, 1951, 1957, 1963, 1969, 1974, and 1978. The data were collected through a content analytic procedure developed for this study. The event statements (units of analysis) were extracted from the codes and were then coded for the variables using a dichotomous decision technique. Data analysis involved multiple techniques: an examination of the variable relationships guided by the hypotheses, an examination of five game flow diagrams (game reconstructions of the natural flow of events), and a qualitative analysis of other relevant juvenile court issues addressed in the codes. Hypotheses which predicted advances for the juvenile were generally supported while those predicting losses for the State were generally not supported. In all games, the State party clearly dominated. Between 1969 and 1978, revision occurred but not consistently toward increased balance between the parties. The structure of the juvenile court games has changed significantly while the relationship of the participants has not. Both the State and the juvenile gained resources to be used in a game comprised of new issues, procedures, and personnel. Tabular and graphic data and about 85 bibliographic references are provided. (Author abstract modified)