Comparative Risk of Victimization for Adolescent Boys Processed through the Juvenile and Adult Criminal Justice Systems in Lagos Nigeria

Abstract

One of the main rationales for the separation of the juvenile and adult criminal justice systems, is the need to protect young people from victimization. It is assumed that, by separating adolescents from adults, the risk of victimization in the former system will be reduced. However, there is still global scarcity of comparative data on the experience of victimization among youth processed through these two justice systems, from which such conclusions can be reached. This study compares self-reported victimization among fifty (50) boys who were processed through the juvenile justice system with an equal number who were processed through the general adult criminal justice system in Lagos (mean age = 16.3 ± 2.0 years). Results showed that the odds of forced confessions (OR = 7.9, CI = 2.7- 37.2 p < 0.001) and torture (OR = 17.0; 4.6 − 63.1) was significantly higher when arrested by the regular police compared with the juvenile police. In the course of detention, however, there was no statistically significant difference in the odds of reporting most other forms of victimization between the two groups. The study concludes that, as far as victimization of young inmates is concerned, boys detained in juvenile institutions did not fare better than those detained in adult prison.