Gender

Most delinquency cases involve males, but the proportion of cases involving females was greater in 1998 than in 1989

• Nearly one-quarter (24%) of all delinquency cases handled in 1998 involved a female juvenile, compared with 19% in 1989.

• In 1989, 20% of all person offense cases involved a female juvenile; this proportion increased to 28% by 1998.

Offense profiles were similar for males and females

• In 1998, the male caseload contained a greater proportion of drug offenses and a smaller proportion of person offenses than the female caseload.

Between 1989 and 1998, the number of delinquency cases involving males increased 35%, while the number of cases involving females increased 83%

• The overall female delinquency caseload grew at an average rate of 7% per year between 1989 and 1998, compared with 3% per year for males.

• The growth in person offense cases was greater for females (157%) than for males (71%) between 1989 and 1998.

• For both males and females, the largest percent growth between 1989 and 1998 was in drug offense cases (142% and 187%, respectively).

Across all offense categories, gender-specific case rates were higher in 1998 than in 1989, with the exception of the property offense case rate for males

• In 1989, the delinquency case rate for males was 4 times greater than the rate for females. By 1998, the male rate was less than 3 times greater than the female rate—89.4 compared with 30.0.

• On average, the drug offense case rate for males was 6 times higher than the rate for females between 1989 and 1998.

Between 1989 and 1998, the percent change in case rates was greater for females than for males in each general offense category

Age-specific case rates for males and females varied by offense

• On average, male delinquency rates were more than 3 times the female rates within age groups.

• Although delinquency case rates generally increased with age, the increase was more pronounced for females than for males. For example, among females, the case rate for 12-year-olds was more than 6 times the rate for 10-year-olds; for males, the case rate for 12-year-olds was 3.5 times the rate for 10-year-olds.

• Male case rates increased continuously through age 17 in two of the four delinquency offense categories: drug law violations and public order. For females, only the drug offense case rate increased continuously through age 17.

• Within each age group, the drug offense case rate for males was 5 times the rate for females. For person, property, and public order offense cases, the male case rate was 3 times the rate for females within each age group.

In 1998, the delinquency case rate for males increased through age 17, while the female case rate peaked at age 16

Race

The number of cases involving white youth increased 43% between 1989 and 1998, while cases involving black youth increased 44%, and those involving youth of other races increased 54%

Most Serious Offense	Number of Cases			Percent Change
	1989	1994	1998	1989–98	1994–98
White	827,700	1,093,100	1,185,400	43%	8%
Person	121,000	209,700	250,200	107	19
Property	515,700	605,300	558,100	8	–8
Drugs	45,100	79,600	131,500	192	65
Public Order	146,000	198,500	245,600	68	24
Black	352,200	512,100	508,200	44%	–1%
Person	86,800	139,400	141,600	63	2
Property	177,600	226,600	205,400	16	–9
Drugs	31,100	49,000	56,000	80	14
Public Order	56,700	97,100	105,200	86	8
Other Races	41,400	61,500	63,800	54%	4%
Person	6,500	11,700	12,000	84	3
Property	26,400	36,100	34,100	29	–6
Drugs	1,500	2,600	5,000	228	91
Public Order	6,900	11,100	12,700	83	15

• Trends differed somewhat across racial groups. For all three groups, the smallest percent increase was in property cases.

• For black juveniles, public order cases showed the largest percent increase (86%); for white juveniles and for youth of other races, drug cases showed the largest percent increase (192% and 228%, respectively).

Note: Detail may not add to totals because of rounding. Percent change calculations are based on unrounded numbers.

For each racial group, the case rate reached a peak in 1996 and then declined

• The total case rate for black juveniles in 1998 (115.2) was more than twice the rate for white juveniles (51.4) and nearly three times the rate for youth of other races (40.3).

For all racial groups, a property offense was the most common charge involved in delinquency cases disposed in 1998

White youth accounted for 67% of the delinquency cases disposed in 1998

Between 1989 and 1998, the percent change in case rates was greater for white youth and black youth than for youth of other races

* Throughout this Report, juveniles of Hispanic ethnicity can be of any race; however, most are included in the white racial category.

Between 1989 and 1998, case rates increased for all racial groups in all offense categories except property offenses

Person offense case rates

• Each year between 1989 and 1998, the person offense case rate for black juveniles was more than 3 times the rates for white juveniles and juveniles of other races.

• Between 1989 and 1998, the person case rate increased more for white youth (82%) than for black youth (41%) or youth of other races (31%).

Property offense case rates

• From 1989 through 1998, the property offense case rates for whites and other races were about half the rates for blacks.

• For all racial groups, property offense case rates were at their peak in the early 1990s. Since 1994, property case rates have declined for each racial group: whites (11%), blacks (15%), and other races (16%).

Drug offense case rates

• Between 1989 and 1991, the drug case rate remained virtually unchanged for black youth but dropped for white youth (31%) and youth of other races (17%). Since 1991, however, drug case rates have increased for all racial groups: whites (271%), blacks (56%), and other races (182%).

• The 1998 drug case rate for blacks (12.7) was twice the rate for whites (5.7) and four times the rate for youth of other races (3.1).

Public order offense case rates

• Between 1989 and 1998, the public order case rates for whites and other races were less than half the rates for blacks.

• The increase in the public order case rate between 1989 and 1998 was greater for black juveniles (60%) than for white juveniles (48%) or juveniles of other races (31%).

Overall, delinquency case rates increased with age in all racial groups in 1998

• Within each age group, the case rate for black youth was more than twice the rate for white youth and for youth of other races.

• Case rates increased through age 17 for white youth and for black youth but peaked at age 16 for youth of other races.

Age-related increases in delinquency case rates occurred for each racial group within all offense categories, although there were variations across the 12 offense-race combinations

Person offense case rates, 1998

• Regardless of race, person offense case rates increased with age and reached a peak at age 16.

• Within each racial group, the person offense case rate for 16-year-olds was nearly twice the rate for 13-year-olds.

Property offense case rates, 1998

• Similar to the pattern of person offense case rates, property offense case rates for all racial groups peaked at age 16 and then declined.

• For each age group, the property case rate for black youth was more than twice the rates for white youth and youth of other races.

Drug offense case rates, 1998

• Case rates for drug offenses increased continuously with age for each racial group.

• Drug offense case rates increased sharply after age 13 for white youth and black youth.

• For black youth, the drug offense case rate for 16-year-olds was 9 times the rate for 13-year-olds.

Public order offense case rates, 1998

• Case rates for public order offenses increased through age 17 for white youth and black youth, while the rate for youth of other races peaked at age 16 and then declined.

• Within each age group, the case rate for public order offenses involving black youth was more than twice the rates for white youth and youth of other races.

Source of Referral

Most delinquency cases are referred to court by law enforcement agencies

• Delinquency cases can be referred to court intake by a number of sources, including law enforcement agencies, social service agencies, schools, parents, probation officers, and victims.

• Law enforcement agencies are traditionally the source of most delinquency referrals. In 1998, for example, 84% of delinquency cases were referred by law enforcement. That percentage was the same in 1989.

• There is some variation across the four major offense categories in the proportion of cases referred by law enforcement.

• In 1998, law enforcement agencies referred 92% of drug law violation cases, 90% of property cases, and 86% of person offense cases.

• Law enforcement agencies referred a smaller proportion of public order offense cases (64%), perhaps because this offense category contains probation violations and contempt-of-court cases, which are referred most often by court personnel.

2 The upper age of juvenile court jurisdiction is defined by statute in each State. See the Glossary of Terms section for a more detailed discussion on upper age of juvenile court jurisdiction. Case rates presented in this Report control for State variations in juvenile population.

3 The percent change in the number of cases disposed may not be equal to the percent change in case rates, because of the changing size of the juvenile population.