Public Assistance to the Police in Preventing Juvenile Delinquency in Late 20th-Century Russia

Abstract

In recent years, countering illegal activity among children and adolescents has been one of the priorities of law enforcement in Russia. This area requires a comprehensive study and improvement, including through academic research. This article is one of the few studies that from the standpoint of modern historical science describes the activities that were carried out at the national, regional and local levels within the framework of public assistance to various services and departments of Russia’s law enforcement bodies. The latter aimed to prevent juvenile delinquency under specific historical circumstances, which are characterized by a transformation of almost all spheres of life, sustainable dynamics of the economic, social and political processes, as well as ideological, spiritual and moral uncertainty, growing crime rates virtually throughout the country and, as a consequence, an escalation of juvenile offending. The author applied the general scientific and general historical methods, which ensured that the results obtained are reliable, comprehensive and concrete. The use of diverse historical sources, both published and archival, allowed the author to draw well-founded conclusions about the development of the institution of public assistance to law enforcement agencies in Russia after the collapse of the Soviet Union, as well as about the organizational and legal framework, content and significance of the joint efforts of the public and police departments to prevent juvenile delinquency.