Challenges to Hispanic Youth with Both Delinquency and Maltreatment History

Abstract

Child victims of maltreatment (abuse or neglect) are at higher risk of delinquency. When children experience both maltreatment and delinquency, they generally face more challenges and experience poorer outcomes across many factors. Hispanics are the fastest-growing minority in the U.S. and have unique cultural and familial considerations. This study sought to explore how adjudicated Hispanic youths with maltreatment history (also referred to as “dually identified youths”) compare to Hispanic youths involved only in the juvenile justice system across psychosocial risk factors and indicators of risk. In El Paso County, Texas, on the U.S.-Mexico border, the researchers matched the records of 255 adjudicated Hispanic juvenile offenders with Child Protective Services’ (CPS) records to identify those with a substantiated maltreatment history. The researchers found that 37 youth (14.5 percent) had been involved in at least one confirmed CPS case. Dually identified juveniles were more likely to have a mental health diagnosis, a court-appointed attorney (used as a proxy for general socioeconomic status), and a close family member with substance abuse problems or criminal justice involvement. On average, dually identified youths faced a larger number of these challenges combined than the youths involved only in delinquency. These findings are discussed in light of prior research on dually identified populations, with implications for juvenile justice and child protective services policy, and research on Hispanic juveniles.