少年犯罪Juvenile Delinquency

少年犯罪

Juvenile Delinquency

Juvenile Delinquency

Text A

Jennifer got off the bus from the university and began walking towards the flat she

shared with two other students. On her way she had to buy some food and stopped in

one

of

the

shops

in

the

street.

It

was

run

by

an

Asian

family,

and

although

the

prices

there were a little higher than in the big supermarket further down the street, she

did a lot of her shopping there. The vegetables were fresher and they had various

things she couldn't get elsewhere. Mr Patel, the owner of the shop, was checking

through a list, but smiled, as he always did, when he saw her come in.

She picked up a wire basket and walked towards the back of the shop, where the rice

was kept: The shop was divided by three long aisles, with rows of shelves crammed

with all sorts of things. Except for her and Mr Patel , there were only two other

people there. They were two teenage boys, and they were standing at the end of one

of the aisles.

She

glanced

at

them

as

she passed. They

were

both

wearing

long,

old-fashioned

overcoats and they looked rather

ridiculous in them because the coats were too big.

But such things were popular with some teenagers at the time. 'Watch out, stupid,'

she

heard

one

of

them

whisper

to

the

other.

She

walked

on

to

the

next

aisle

and

found

the rice she was looking for.

Then

she

heard

something

else.

It

sounded

like

a

tin

dropping

on

the

floor.

She

peered

through a gap in the shelf and caught a glimpse of one. of the boys bending down.

She

saw him pick

up

a tin of food. But instead of putting it in the

shopping basket,

he

dropped

it

into

the

inside

pocket

of

his

long

overcoat.

Jennifer

glanced

back

down

the

aisle.

She

could

see

Mr

Patel

at

the

cash

till,

still

checking

through

his

list.

Then she looked through the gap in the shelf again. The boys still had their backs

to

her.

'Come

on,

let's

get

out

of

here,'

she

heard

one

of

them

say.

At

the

same

time,

she

saw

one

of

them

put

another

tin

in

his

overcoat

pocket.

They

moved

away

from

her.

She could no longer see what they were doing or hear what they were saymg.

When she got to the till, the two boys were in front of her. She watched them pay

for the few things they had in the basket. They had both buttoned their coats and

fastened

them

with

their

belts.

Mr

Patel

did

not

seem

suspicious

at

all.

He

even

smiled

at them as they were about to leave. Jennifer opened her mouth to say something.

Text B

The only crime I have ever been connected with was unsuccessful. One summer night

I

went

to

bed,

leaving

my

bedroom

door

open

because

it

was

very

hot.

During

the

night

I was woken up by the sound of a match being struck. For a moment I thought it must

be the friend I lived with, but then I remembered he was away.

I felt certain there was someone in the room. I saw the outline of a man standing

near the door. I was almost certain the man was a burglar. Without thinking what I

was

doing,

I shouted

loudly

and. jumped out of bed to catch the man. As

I ran across

the garden, I suddenly realized I was doing something very foolish. The burglar I

was

chasing

might

be

carrying

a

knife.

I

went

straight

back

into

the

house

and

locked

all the doors to protect myself.

This was a very small crime which did not succeed, but crime is a serious problem

in

Britain.

One

sort

of

crime

which

particularly

worries

people

is

juvenile

delinquency-that is, crimes committed by young people. For some years, juvenile

delinquency

has

been

increasing.

There

are

two

main

sorts

of

juvenile

crime

:

stealing

and violence. Most people do not understand why young people commit these crimes.

There are , I think, a large number of different reasons.

These

crimes

are

not

usually

committed

by

people

who

are

poor

or

in

needl.

Young

people

often dislike and resent the adult world. They will do things to show that they are

rebels.

Also

in

Britain

today

it

is

easier

far

young

people

to

commit

crimes

because

they have more freedom to go where they like and more money to do what they like.

There

are

two

other

possible

causes

which

are

worth

mentioning.

More

and

more

people

in Britain live in large towns. In a large town no one knows who anyone else is or

where they live. But in the village I come from crimes are rare because everybody

knows everyone else.

Although

it

is

diffcult

to

explain,

I

think

the

last

cause

is

very

important.

Perhaps

there is something wrong with our society which encourages violence and crime. It

is a fact that all the time children are exposed to films and reports about crime

and

violence.

Many

people

do

nat

agree

that

this

influences

young

people,

but

I

think

that young people are very much influenced

by the society they grow up in. I

feel

that

the

fault may be

as tnuch with our whole

society as with these young people.

Additional Information

It's

just

before

school

starts,

when

they

check

the

pupils

for

guns.

By

now,

the

1,600

students at Chester High School in Philadelphia have got used to it.

One by one, they go through a metal detector gate, like the ones at an airport, at

the

main

entrance

to

their

school.

The

beeper

alarm

is

constantly

going

off,

indicating some metal object in the pupil's pockets. Mostly, it is a key, or coins.

Such searches-in some schools a regular routine , in others , a spotcheck- are part

of the attempt of school authorities in the United States to keep students from

bringing into the classroom their knives, revolvers and machine- guns.

The

metal

detector

checks

have

already

become

commonplace

in

schools

in

Philadelphia,

Detroit, and New York. A school in Fairfax, on the outskirts of Washington, D. C. ,

will soon begin them.

School

administrators

decided

that

something

finally

had

to

be

done

after

the

various

shootouts

and

discoveries

of

weapons

in

schools

around

the

country

had

made

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