Most of us probably did something in our childhood that we are ashamed of or embarrassed about. We fibbed to our parents, missed curfew, and sometimes got grounded for errors in judgment. With childhood often comes bad decision making; as adults we look back and realize those mistakes and the consequences that followed were a fact of life. But sometimes, young people make very serious choices and some of their bad decisions and poor judgment may involve committing a crime.
Most of us can think of a time when we or a friend shoplifted some gum or candy from the grocery store or carved our name on a desk at school. While these two acts will not land a juvenile in jail, a more serious crime certainly might. If you or a young person in your life has been arrested for any crime, it is absolutely imperative that you hire an experienced criminal defense attorney in your area to defend your case.
Single Parent Stigma
While the case can be made that many crimes are committed by children from single homes, studies indicate that there has been a decline in youth crime even though single parenthood still exists. FBI crime statistics even indicate that violent juvenile crime stats are at their lowest point in twenty years. It cannot be ignored that major crime rates among children occur across all demographics.This is especially true when it comes to school shooters, who tend to come from two parent homes.
So, what are the common denominators? One finds that in homes where there is attention, love and care, the child is well adjusted and happy. Of course, a single parent may find it harder to give time and attention, especially when working two jobs to make ends meet. On the other hand, if a double parent home is dysfunctional, abusive or devoid of love, it can produce a hostility that comes out in negatively as well.
Dooming Kids to Failure
The assumption is that most kids from single a parent homes are products of divorce or an “epidemic” of teens who opt to live on welfare and do not have the skills to raise their children properly. A look at welfare statistics however, indicates that only 8% of the welfare dole is given out to teen parents. This means that the epidemic we tend to hear so much about may be a little inflated.
In most cases, teens who have babies receive help from their extended families. This also means that the child may have familial love and support from relatives who assist in child rearing duties. Some children are raised by a single parent because of the death of their mother or father as well. In other words, single parents may end up having to raise a kid alone due to situations beyond their control.