Published online by Cambridge University Press: 02 July 2024
The juvenile court in Italy was established many years after those in the United States and other European countries. Even after its creation problems of differentiation and staffing remained, and delays plus ineffective services continue to complicate day-to-day operations of the juvenile courts. I propose that the juvenile court in Italy has been a spurious development, reflecting contradictions between the culture of legal certainty and familism, and the adoption of a pattern of discretionary justice based on the positivism of Ferri. Operations of the juvenile court resemble rituals aimed to satisfy conflicting values. Signs are that its legitimacy has been weakened and that other forms of social control have emerged or reemerged.
The Center on Administration of Justice, University of California at Davis, and the Ford Foundation supported the research for this article. Professor Floyd Feeney, University of California at Davis, did much to make it all possible. Professor Franco Ferracuti, University of Rome, provided invaluable assistance for the author's research in Italy. Others providing valuable help were Gilda Scardaccione, Researcher, University of Rome, and Gaetano de Leo, Professor, University of Rome.