Evolution of recidivism risk using the YLS/CMI in Spanish serious reoffenders

Juvenile recidivism risk assessment can be used to explore the specific risk factors that lead minors to commit crimes. The majority of minors have a limited relationship with the judicial system, but a few reoffend into adulthood. The aims of this study are to examine serious reoffenders' criminal trajectories and explore youth and adult recidivism. The participants comprise 260 juveniles aged from 14 to 18 years (M = 16.5, SD = 1.0) with a disciplinary record in the juvenile court of a Spanish province, who were sentenced to educational measures involving probation and confinement to a juvenile detention centre. Youth and adult recidivism was recorded over a follow-up period lasting from 1.5 to 6 years. The results show a profile of serious reoffenders with a moderate level of recidivism risk that increases during the follow-up period. Crimes against property were the most frequently committed, and juveniles who begin their criminal trajectories with this type of crime tend to reoffend into adulthood.