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Introduction
Boot camp, “frequently called shock or intensive incarceration…are designed to be an alternative to probation or to prison” (Wilson, MacKenzie, & Mitchell, 2008). According to Jones (2012), the first juvenile boot camp was established in the 1980s to take quick action on juveniles with “diversion ideology”.
These camps handle first time offenders who can reform after undergoing various military drills and instant physical punishments. Juvenile boot camps are designed to give juveniles the “tough love” approach through the use of strict disciplinary measures and limitations on freedoms or privileges…” (Childs, 2007). Tough and brutal military drills in boot camps aim at reforming juveniles by instilling discipline.
Discussion
The video portrays boot camp officers’ meting brutal drills and physical exercises to punish juveniles for their offences. The officers force juveniles to engage in various exercises which seem extreme for their bodies to handle. In the video, one minor seems too exhausted to do push-ups, yet an officer continues to shout instructions at him. As the video progressed, some of the juveniles share their experiences how boot camps have transformed their characters to the extent of going to school without supervision.
Most boot camps admit students who commit minor offences such as: tagging, skipping school, indiscipline, felony of assault with deadly weapon, gang involvement and prostitution.
All the students admitted at these camps are first time offenders. In juvenile boot camps, “less emphasis is placed on hard labor… but apt to provide juveniles with academic education… undertake rigorous in-take procedures, shaved heads, drill and ceremony, physical training, immediate physical punishment for misbehavior (e.g., push-ups), and graduation ceremonies” (Wilson et al., 2008).
Most of the students interviewed in the video believe boot camps made them understand their mistakes and were able to correct them. They can now look for jobs, respect their parents and go to school without supervision. For this program to succeed, parents have to attend training every Saturday to learn, share experiences and check the progress made by their children. They also learn ways of creating conducive environment to make their children become responsible.
Most juvenile camps tailor their programs to suit the offences. “Some camps emphasize therapeutic programming; others focus on discipline and rigorous physical training” (Wilson et al., 2008). In the video, the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) boot camp conducts its activities from 8 am to 3 pm for 12 consecutive Saturdays.
In the first four weeks, the officers’ conduct drills that break the students emotionally and mentally. After the fourth week, the officers start to build their self-esteem, self-respect and respect to parents. Officer Joseph Marrone of the LAPD boot camp claims their program has a 75% success rate.
Advocates project that juvenile camps help reduce criminal activities in the neighborhood while critics try to argue the ineffectiveness of these camps in recidivism reduction. Research conducted by Wilson et al., (2008) concluded that “boot camps are neither as good as the advocates expect nor as bad as the critics hypothesize” (Wilson et al., 2008). Over the years, the program has become popular with the public, but has not changed criminal statistics.
In 2006, Florida enacted a law “that abolishes boot camps and replaces them with academies that rely more on education and after care, and are limited in their use of force…” (Vasilinda, 2006). This legislation “is named after 14-year-old Martin Lee Anderson, the Panama City boy who suffocated to death after drill instructors stuck ammonia tablets up his nose” (Vasilinda, 2006).
This tragic incident highlights the dangers of boot camps and the extent officers push the juveniles to complete exercises. Most officers train to handle adults making it practically impossible for them to know the limit when handling a juvenile. Officers should restrain using force when a juvenile threatens to hit him or his peers. Instead, they should immediately call the police whenever such problems occur. This problem is bound to happen again unless boot camp officers train on ways to handle juveniles.
Research has shown that some juveniles continue with their “divisive ideologies” after attending boot camps. For some, they do not properly adjust to community supervision such as pursuing jobs and education. For others, they continue with antisocial attitudes they develop in boot camps.
These characteristics occur as a result of rigorous military drills and physical exercise administered by boot camp officers instead of therapy to find the problem. Parents play a role in ensuring that their children reform. Parents attend classes in boot camps to help them understand the need for creating conducive environment for their children.
Conclusion
Juvenile boot camps offer perfect setting on which a student learns how to respect the authority and themselves. In my opinion, most juveniles are too young to withstand the strain from the exercises in boot camps. These camps are suitable for juveniles who commit offences like assault with deadly weapons and gang involvement.
The street toughens these students, creating emotional and mental walls. Rigorous drills in juvenile boot camps are required to break these walls. These camps should create other therapy programs which will deal with minor offences like skipping schools or prostitution.
References
Childs, C. (2007). Boot Camp for Juveniles. Web.
Jones, J. (2012). A Multi-State Analysis of Correctional Boot Camp Outcomes: Identifying Vocational Rehabilitation as a Complement to Shock Incarceration. Web.
Vasilinda, M. (2006). Boot Camp Abolished in Florida. Web.
Wilson, D., MacKenzie, D., Mitchell, F. (2008). Effects of Correctional Boot Camps on Offending. Web.
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