JUSTICE SYSTEM IS HARDER 
ON YOUNG HISPANICS THAN ON WHITES

BYLINE: Alfonso Aguilar

 

July 18, 2002


Washington D.C.- The organization Building Blocks for Youth presented a report Thursday on the disparite treatment of Hispanics and whites in the U.S. criminal justice system.

Hispanic youths are punished more severely than their non-Hispanic white peers charged with the same types of offenses, said Francisco Villarruel, who co-authored the report "Donde esta la justicia? (Where is the justice?): A call to action on behalf of Latino and Latina youth in the U.S. Justice System."

"This first ever national analysis of Latino and Latina youth in the juvenile justice system reveals alarming and dramatic inequities," said Villarruel, associate professor of family and child ecology at Michigan State University.

"Latino and Latina youth are getting more punitive treatment for the same crimes and the evidence suggests that the disparities are even worse as inadequate data masks the true depth of inequality," he added.

In the case of drug offenses, young Latinos are 13 times more likely to be jailed than their non-Hispanic white counterparts, while Latino youth charged with violent offenses are five times as likely as whites facing the same charges to be incarcerated, the report revealed.

Disparate treatment and higher incarceration rates for Hispanic youth were found in 46 of the 50 U.S. states, according to Human Rights Watch.

Moreover, Hispanics also tend to receive stiffer jail sentences than whites, which has a compounding and "cumulative" effect on them, researchers found.

"Initial disparities that occur at arrest are compounded by later disparities, resulting in a 'cumulative disadvantage' for Latino youth," the report states, citing arrest, prosecution and imprisonment rates for Los
Angeles' Hispanic youth from 1996-1998.

During the study period, L.A.'s Hispanic youth were arrested 2.3 times more often than white youth and prosecuted 2.4 times as often. Subsequently, they were imprisoned 7.3 times more than whites and the average length of their incarceration for the same offense was also considerably longer.

In instances of drug-related or violent crimes, young Latino offenders were imprisoned 5 months longer than non-Hispanic white boys and girls who had committed the same crime. They spent one month more in jail for property offenses.

The lack of bilingual and bicultural personnel in the judicial system compounds the problem, Building Blocks coordinator Mark Soler said.

The problem is one of many that turn young Latinos into an invisible minority for the purpose of policy planning and development, Soler said.

The study underscores than many problems facing today's Hispanic youth are made worse by confusion stemming from the cultural ignorance or insensitivity prevailing in the judicial system.

For example, Soler said, in many Latin American countries avoiding direct eye contact is considered respectful, but for U.S. authorities, such as judges and prosecutors, this type of behavior is construed as "rudeness" or an attempt to mislead.

The chairman of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, Rep. Silvestre Reyes (Dem.-TX) praised the report as firm foundation from which to tackle the injustices experienced by young Latino boys and girls.

The Building Blocks for Youth initiative is a national campaign to promote a fair and effective youth justice system. The report, published in both English and Spanish, was prepared by the Institute for Children, Youth and Families at Michigan State University.