Essays on CLASSIFICATION OF JUVENILE ARSONISTS

According to the researches of the US Department of Justice Office of Juvenile Delinquency and Prevention, all the juvenile fire setters, or arsonists can be divided into three groups:

• curiosity fire setters. They include children under the age of 8 who usually start fire but without any intention. It is done accidentally.

• Intentional fire setters. They are children of 8-12 years old who have a motive to start a fire but it is connected with their psychological disorder.

• Crisis fire setters, or arsonists. This group includes teenagers of 13-18 years old who have a long fire history. It means that they have already committed arsons. Their motive is connected with their psychological disorders and “intentional criminal behavior” which can lead to the serious consequences.

Children have always been interested in the process of starting a fire. According to some psychological studies, the child interest in fire appears before the age of 3. However, there are a lot of different factors which influence the child.

Some children are afraid of setting a fire, while others are rather active. (Siegel, 2010, p.298)

It is noticed that as children get older and older, they direct their arsons far away from the houses they live in. They look for such locations as vacant buildings, automobiles, school buildings, barns, and so on. According to the numerous researches which were carried out by the fire investigators, it is known that the location of the arson, or fire setting depends on the factors which motivate the child to commit arson. For example, those children who have serious family problems and want to bring attention to the situation in his family, start a fire in the occupied buildings. They include school buildings or their home. Those children who want to revenge or to frighten somebody, start a fire in the abandoned buildings. (Siegel, 2010, p.300)

SOME EXAMPLES OF ARSONS WHICH WERE COMMITTED BY JUVENILES

There are different situations which describe the arsons committed by the children. The following case examples show that in most situations children suffered from the lack of attention of their parents, teachers and other children.

Case 1: Fire in the school building

A boy of 15 years old had intention to burn his school because he had some problems with his classmates. The teachers did not pay due attention to his psychological state and did not find the solution. The boy set a fire in one of the school buildings. This fire caused $350,000 damage to the school.

According to the information represented in the report of the fire investigator, the boy lived in the upper middle class family. His parents were respectful people. However, they also did not notice certain changes in the behavior of their son. It means that poor parenting skills had negative result on the boy’s development.

Case 2: Nine fires in one night

A 14-year old boy lived with his mother who was a drug and alcohol addict. They lived in the trailer. The boy’s mother was away for a long period of time. The boy was left alone. His father died several years ago. The boy was frustrated and angry with his mother who did not pay him due attention. He decided to set nine fires in one night in order to attract his mother’s attention. Fortunately, the fires did not resulted in great damages. (Schwartzman et al., 1997, p.13)

This case shows that the boy had some psychological problems which were connected with his mother’s relation to him. In this case, the boy’s mother is a guilty person. She could not prevent the crime because she did not pay due attention to her son.

The parents should not ignore their children. They should be interested in everything they do including school and after school activities. The parents as well as the teachers should watch the psychological state of the children in order to prevent serious consequences.

CONCLUSION

In conclusion, it is necessary to say that juvenile arsonists can be related to a special group of offenders which requires serious investigation. It is very important to find a comprehensive approach to this problem in order to prevent a great number of fires, deaths, property damages.

Fire can symbolize both life and death. Although it is associated with the sun, it can do a lot of harm to people. Of course, it is very important to explain children the role of fire in our life at the early age. Those children who find a so called delight in the process of flickering flames are abnormal. They need special treatment. That is why only parents and teachers can explain the child the nature of fire. Only these people can prevent a dangerous situation which can have terrible consequences.