Juvenile Arrest Statistics 1

RUNNING HEAD: Juvenile Arrest Statistics

Juvenile Arrest Statistics
Steven Griffiths
CJA374
Crystal Gregory
University of Phoenix
12/9/2012










Juvenile Arrest Statistics 2

Examining the Arrests
In todays society, both adults and juveniles are entering the criminal justice system more and
more, the overall amount of juvenile drug offenses in 2008 was 180,100 arrests made, of the 180,100 15%
were female offenders, 15% were offenders under the age of 15. If you look at these numbers and
compare them with the 2007 to 2008 recorded numbers, there is a -5 and -7% change respectively. The
drop in these numbers could be attributed to an increase in parental involvement in their kids lives, or an
increase in available community programs designed to give kids something else to do other than buy, sell,
and do drugs. In 2008 various law enforcement agencies made a staggering 629,800 arrests of female
offenders under the age of 18, however from 1999 to 2008 the overall numbers of arrests had decreased in
most categories. Also in some categories (simple assault, DUI, larceny, and theft) the number increased,
while the male number for the same categories had declined. If you look at the overall racial composition
of the United States juvenile population you will see that in ages 10 through 17 was 78% white, 16%
black, 5% Asian/pacific islander, and 1% American indian. A higher percentage of juveniles of Hispanic
origin were included in the 78% of whites. The VCI (Violent Crime Index) rate of arrests per 100,000
youth arrested since 2008 for African Americans (926) was almost 5 times the rate of Caucasians
arrested (178) which was 6 times the overall rate for American Indian youth (at 153) and a more than 13
time increase of Asian youth (73). The difference in numbers for minority arrests is often thought to be
related to their environment as well as family influences and friends. If you grow up in a bad
neighborhood you grow up mimicking the local surroundings. If you come from an average middle class
family your chances of becoming an offender in the system as a youth offender is slightly lower. One of
the biggest types of offenses for both males and females of all races is that of violent crimes. At the end of
2008 the final reporting percentage of violent crimes for juvenile offenders was 16% covering males and
females as well as all reporting races. It should be noted however that there was an overall 9% drop in the
youth violent crime index. According to the NCJRS These findings are drawn from data that
local law enforcement agencies across the country report to the FBIs Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR)
Program. Based on these data, the FBI prepares its annual Crime in the United States statistical
Juvenile Arrest Statistics 3

compilation, which summarizes crimes known to the police and arrests made during the reporting
calendar year. This information is used to describe the extent and nature of juvenile crime that comes to
the attention of the justice system
Reference
Retrieved from: https://www.ncjrs.gov/pdffiles1/ojjdp/228479.pdf