"Murder in American Society"

In Jack Levin’s presentation on “Murder in American Society,” he discussed a few possible causes of juvenile violence, trends, and ideas for reducing school violence. In the 1960s and 1970s, many baby-boomers were adolescents and adults acted like adolescents. Levin described this era as the “Cult of Youth,” in which frustrated and disaffected teenagers became violent activists; these sentiments contributed to the rise in murder rates. Additionally, 14 to 17 year olds began to imitate murders that 18 to 24 year olds were committing. This trend became apparent in the 1990s when there was an increased rate in handgun use as a murder weapon.

In hopes of combating these climbing rates of murder, Boston officials implemented the Partnership Model and New York City officials implemented the Zero Tolerance Policing plan. In New York City, police officers began arresting adolescents for smaller crimes such as graffiti; they believed that teenagers who committed small crimes were likely to commit murder. A drop was seen in the murder rates in NYC. In Boston, the Partnership Model was a grassroots community project, involving the participation of clergy, teachers, police, and parents. The city provided adolescents with more after-school programs, tutoring opportunities, more lifeguards at pools, and more summer jobs. This model is likely to have contributed to the drop in murder rates committed by adolescents.

Levin also discussed how adolescent murderers behaved and felt before they committed their crimes. He described them as humiliated, motivated to feel important, wanting revenge against other students for their personal miseries, and feeling trapped in their school and community. He listed a few warning signs that are seen in teenagers who eventually murder someone: hating school, playing violent video games, an interest in alternative music, and being bullied. Even though these interests and beliefs may be seen in many individuals who have committed murders, we cannot draw a causal conclusion. Additionally, Levin discussed how many adolescent murderers abused animals when they were children. This, along with other violent behaviors and a lack of guilt/compassion, is commonly seen in children and adolescents with conduct disorder. It is probable that many adolescent murderers have conduct disorder.

A few ideas Levin had for reducing school violence were: bringing back more classes on art, music, physical education, reducing school size, increasing staffing in schools, teaching conflict resolution skills, reduce bullying, provide alternative programs, early intervention for violent behaviors, and teaching children impulse control and empathy. Red flags for future violent behavior can sometimes be seen in many children; it is crucial to intervene immediately and to help a child who is crying out for attention or help. Levin discussed many behaviors that may be correlated with juvenile violence; however, we must be cautious when drawing causal conclusions on this issue.