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