Both adult and juvenile offenders were faced with the consequences of the major punitive shift of the U.S. criminal justice system during the eighties and into the nineties. Legal rhetoric and media outlets painted an image of the murderous, impulse driven juvenile, permeating fear throughout American society; juvenile arrests skyrocketed, more juveniles were transferred to adult court than ever before, and previously non-threatening environments became criminalized. Furlong,.
This perception of dangerous, criminal youth soon penetrated school communities and school discipline codes began to echo the sentiments of this punitive movement (Furlong, Chung, & Bates, 1995). Furlong, Chung and Bates (1995) reported that media, through its extensive coverage of violent incidents in schools, had a major impact on the perception that school violence was rampant at this time. This increased fear of violence was problematic and many were concerned that the quality of education, as well as the school environment, would be adversely affected. Quality of education can be severely impeded by widespread fear among students, teachers and the general school community; if people are afraid to go to school, including school staff, there can be very negative impacts on the school environment (Mulhern, 1994). The mere perception of violence in schools can both physically and psychologically impact students in a detrimental way: impeding physical, social, or academic growth and development (Furlong, Morrison, & Dear, 1993). .
In order to better manage this fear, schools looked to reform disciplinary regulations. School districts took a variety of approaches in order to re-instill a sense of security and prevent fear from impeding educational achievement. Many schools began to adopt zero-tolerance policies as a means of creating a safer school environment. .
By 1993, zero tolerance policies made their way into schools across the United States (Skiba & Peterson, 1999).
