Females make up a small portion of the juveniles in custody, but require unique programming

Females accounted for 13% of juveniles in residential placement

The juvenile justice system is dominated by male offenders; this is especially true of the custody population. In 1999, males represented half of the juvenile population and were involved in approximately three-quarters of juvenile arrests and delinquency cases processed in juvenile court, but they represented 87% of juveniles in residential placement. The small proportion of female juveniles in residential placement was greater for private facilities (16%) than for public facilities (12%) and greater for detained juveniles (18%) than committed juveniles (12%). In comparison, the female proportion among those admitted to placement under a diversion agreement was large (40%).

More than one-third of females in residential placement were held in private facilities

Females in private facilities accounted for 35% of all females in residential placement in 1999. In comparison, private facilities held 28% of males in residential placement.

The proportion of females placed in private facilities varied substantially by offense category: 66% of all females held for a status offense were in private facilities, as were 42% held for simple assault, 25% held for aggravated assault, and 15% held for robbery. In general for both males and females, the less serious the offense category, the greater the likelihood the resident was in a private facility.

Females in residential placement tended to be younger than their male counterparts

Of all youth in custody, 30% of females were younger than 15 compared with 21% of males. For females in placement, the peak ages were 15 and 16, each accounting for approximately one-quarter of all females in placement facilities. For males, the peak ages were 16 and 17.

There was a greater proportion of offenders age 18 or older among males (14%) than among females (5%).

Age profile of residents, 1999:
Age
Total
Male
Female
Total
100%
100%
100%
12 and younger
4
4
5
13
6
6
9
14
12
11
17
15
19
19
24
16
24
24
24
17
22
23
17
18 and older
13
14
5

Females were more likely than males to be held for technical violations or status offenses
 
Offense profile for juvenile offenders in residential placement on October 27, 1999
  All facilities Public facilities Private facilities
Most serious offense
Male
Female
Male
Female
Male
Female
Total juvenile offenders
100%
100%
100%
100%
100%
100%
Delinquency
97
87
99
94
93
76
  Person
36
30
37
32
32
27
    Violent Crime Index*
27
15
29
18
21
9
    Other person
9
15
8
14
11
17
  Property
30
24
30
25
30
22
    Property Crime Index •
25
20
25
20
25
19
    Other property
5
4
5
4
5
3
  Drug
10
6
9
6
10
7
    Drug trafficking
3
1
3
1
3
1
    Other drug
6
5
6
5
7
6
  Public order
10
7
10
8
11
6
  Technical violation ‡
12
20
12
23
10
15
Status offense
3
13
1
6
7
24
  • Status offenders were 13% of females in custody in 1999, down from 23% in 1997. Person offenders were 30% of females in custody in 1999, up from 25% in 1997.

* Violent Crime Index = criminal homicide, sexual assault, robbery, and aggravated assault.

• Property Crime Index = burglary, theft, auto theft, and arson.

‡ Technical violations = violations of probation, parole, and valid court order.

Source: Author’s analysis of OJJDP’s Census of Juveniles in Residential Placement [machine- readable data files].

Minorities made up a smaller share of female than male residents

In 1999, minority youth made up the majority of males and females in residential placement. Non-Hispanic whites made up 47% of female and 36% of male juvenile offenders in residential placement. Among males, non-Hispanic black offenders represented the largest proportion (40%).

Females accounted for a smaller proportion of minorities overall (11%) than of nonminority whites (17%) in residential placement in 1999.

Gender profile of residents, 1999:
Race/ethnicity
Total
Male
Female
Total
100%
87%
13%
White
100
83
17
Minority
100
89
11
    Black
100
88
12
    Hispanic
100
91
9
    Other
100
84
16
Note: Total includes a small number of juveniles for whom race was not reported.

Racial profile of residents, 1999:
Race/ethnicity
Total
Male
Female
Total
100%
100%
100%
White
38
36
47
Minority
62
64
53
    Black
39
40
35
    Hispanic
18
19
13
    Other
4
4
5
Note: Total includes a small number of juveniles for whom race was not reported.

Nationally, the number of females in residential placement increased 2% from 1997 to 1999
   
Percent change 1997–99
 
State of offense
1999 female custody population
Female
Male
Female proportion 1999
U.S. Total
14,561
2%
3%
13%
Alabama
297
2
–7
19
Alaska
60
*
14
16
Arizona
288
2
2
15
Arkansas
132
*
5
19
California
1,926
8
–5
10
Colorado
324
32
10
16
Connecticut
174
4
12
12
Delaware
45
*
4
13
Dist. of Columbia
15
*
0
6
Florida
960
50
10
14
Georgia
582
–3
4
16
Hawaii
27
*
–16
23
Idaho
51
*
45
14
Illinois
393
56
10
10
Indiana
615
24
2
23
Iowa
171
–25
1
17
Kansas
222
–20
7
18
Kentucky
231
26
7
19
Louisiana
327
–10
0
12
Maine
39
*
–27
16
Maryland
156
16
4
10
Massachusetts
114
–21
17
10
Michigan
672
14
17
16
Minnesota
306
19
15
17
Mississippi
57
*
3
7
Missouri
177
–22%
–16%
15%
Montana
30
*
–16
12
Nebraska
180
–2
–3
25
Nevada
147
–8
–8
19
New Hampshire
33
*
20
15
New Jersey
189
7
6
8
New Mexico
99
*
9
12
New York
921
–3
5
19
North Carolina
162
–8
23
11
North Dakota
48
*
–15
20
Ohio
561
2
5
12
Oklahoma
150
19
43
13
Oregon
192
–6
8
12
Pennsylvania
411
–21
–1
11
Rhode Island
21
*
–25
7
South Carolina
243
7
4
15
South Dakota
90
*
18
15
Tennessee
282
–28
–27
18
Texas
768
10
16
10
Utah
132
26
29
13
Vermont
9
*
*
*
Virginia
429
–13
11
14
Washington
261
–11
–5
12
West Virginia
54
*
–5
14
Wisconsin
264
–19
–2
14
Wyoming
132
–4
–10
43

In nearly all states, females represented a relatively small proportion of the 1999 custody population—10% or less in 8 states and the District of Columbia.

* Too few juveniles in category to calculate a reliable percentage.

Note: U.S. total includes 2,645 juvenile offenders in private facilities for whom state of offense was not reported and 174 juvenile offenders in tribal facilities.

Source: Author’s analysis of OJJDP’s Census of Juveniles in Residential Placement [machine-readable data files].


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Juveniles in Corrections OJJDP National Report Series Bulletin
June 2004