Juvenile justice
The objective of the Dutch juvenile justice system is to reduce criminal behaviour of young people. The aim is to prevent the first offence and to avoid recurrence. The point of departure of the Dutch system is that quick, effective and early intervention is needed. There is not one single risk factor that leads to criminal behaviour; it is usually an accumulation of causes. Nevertheless, the younger the offender the worse the outlook is for further criminal behaviour. Young offenders not only commit more crimes, but also more serious ones. Young migrants are overrepresented in the statistics.