Juvenile Community Services for the Benefit of the Local Community: In Search of Effective Methods of Resocialization

Abstract

The article concerns juvenile community services for the benefit of the local community – an educational measure used by Polish courts. It presents research carried out using three methods: the legal-dogmatic method, the statistical method, and the case study method. The research covered 14 cases in which in 2013 the court obliged juveniles to work for the local community (nearly 1% of the total number of such rulings within this year in Poland). The results show that courts use this educational measure increasingly often, and it currently constitutes about 4% of rulings regarding educational measures aimed at juveniles. Courts most commonly use such measures against juveniles who are between 16 and 17 years old. Generally, it included 10 hours of community services for the benefit of the juveniles’ schools. Carrying out the ruling was usually managed by probation officers. The article also highlights the lack of legislation regulating the assignment and carrying out of juvenile community service. Such lack of clarity caused difficulties in carrying out the courts’ rulings.