The Disproportionate Overrepresentation of Minority Youth in ...

247
Distrust of the System
Forty-two percent of the decision makers indicated that blacks are less respectful
than whites (Tables 6, 7).
As a group, they [ present themselves less respectfully than whites. I think
that works against them and I think that is unfortunate but that is just the
way, as a group, the blacks tend to react and in the long run it does hurt.
I think the kids who come from the inner city tend to be more
disrespectful, they haven’t learned the socialization that maybe some of
the other kids who come from the suburbs have.
Black families were seen as those primarily more distrustful of the system. Yet, 82%
responded that blacks are not less likely to admit guilt. This view is highlighted by the
following statement,
I see the upper class kids in West Des Moines who think that they have the
world by the tail because they have money and they don’t give a damn
what the heck they have done. So, I guess I would have to say that I see
more inner city kids being more remorseful for what they have done.
Race Differences in Processing
In this section questions are asked about the stages of processing and the
disproportionate overrepresentation of minorities in the system. Probation officers did not
recognize race differences at any individual stage in the proceedings, except possibly at
the police level. Police discrimination was provided as a possible explanation for the
disproportionate overrepresentation of minorities in the system.