Trends and Characteristics of Juvenile Firearm Offenses in King County, WA

Through his examination of 840 King County juvenile firearm cases from January 1994 through May 1997, the DPA was able to examine the trends and characteristics of juvenile firearm offenses.²

• What Are the Characteristics of Juvenile Firearm Offenders?
  
  
  • Juvenile court handles cases involving juveniles ages 8 to 17. Juvenile firearm offenders are generally among the older segment of this population, with more than half of all juvenile offenses committed by youth ages 16 and 17. (More than 80 percent of robberies and assaults by juveniles using firearms are committed by youth age 15 or older, while the majority of burglaries by juveniles where firearms are stolen are committed by youth age 15 or younger.)
    
    
  • The number of male offenders rises steadily with age. The number of female offenders peaks at age 15 and then begins to decline. Female juveniles often become involved with firearms through their boyfriends, who are typically a year or two older. This may explain the female juvenile offender peak at age 15, when many girls begin dating (see figure 2).

• Less than 7 percent of all juvenile firearm crimes are committed by females. Female juveniles are more likely to be involved in property or possession crimes involving firearms and are rarely involved in violent firearm offenses.
  
  
• The majority of juvenile firearm offenders (58 percent) have at least one delinquency adjudication on their record. Another 20 percent have had some type of court referral, but no adjudications. Only 22 percent of all juvenile firearm offenders have no record of any prior delinquent activity (see figure 3).
  

• Juveniles who commit robberies with firearms tend to have lengthier delinquency histories than juveniles who commit other types of firearm offenses.
  
  
• The average juvenile firearm offender’s delinquency history includes one prior felony-level adjudication, one-and-a-half prior misdemeanor-level adjudications, and four other prior juvenile court referrals.
  
  
• Only 12 percent of juvenile firearm offenders have had a prior adjudication or referral for a firearm-related offense.
  

• When Do Firearm Crimes Occur?
  
  
  • The rate of juvenile gun crime is generally higher during the school months, declining slightly in the summer, and falling sharply in December. These results follow general trends in juvenile crime in King County.
    
    
  • The number of juvenile offenses involving firearms peaks in the late evening (10 p.m.). Another smaller peak in firearm activity is seen in the afternoon (2 p.m.), mostly in connection with burglaries.
    
    
• Where Do Juvenile Offenders Get Their Guns?

For the majority of firearm offenses examined, it is not known where or how juveniles acquired guns. Data on the cases where the source of the firearm is known revealed the following:

• The firearm was stolen by the user or later confirmed as stolen by someone else in 39 percent of the cases.
  
  
• The firearm was obtained from a friend or relative in 42 percent of the cases. Juveniles often receive firearms from their friends, usually at their school or home. It is also common for juveniles to take their parents’ guns and bring them to school, give them to other juveniles, or use them in violent crimes. Juveniles often say they needed to take the gun for “protection.”
  
  
• The firearm was purchased by the juvenile in only 15 percent of the cases. Typically, a juvenile purchaser admits buying the gun on the street from an unidentified person for between $50 and $100.
  
  
• The firearm was claimed to have been “found” by the juvenile in 4 percent of the cases.
  

• How Are Firearms Used by Juvenile Offenders?
  
  
• When committing a robbery using a firearm, juvenile offenders rarely fire their guns (8 percent of all incidents). The gun is primarily used for intimidation.
  
  
• In felony assault cases involving a firearm, the weapon was fired by the juvenile in 63 percent of the cases and injury resulted in 43 percent of those cases. (A felony assault with a firearm may occur when the offender points a gun at the victim, whether or not any shots were fired or any injury resulted.)
  
  
• Seventy-four percent of all guns recovered from juvenile offenders were found to be loaded. Of the juveniles who possessed unloaded guns, one-third also possessed ammunition for the gun.
  
  
• What Types of Firearms Are Used by Juvenile Offenders?
  
  
  • Semiautomatic handguns are the weapon of choice for most juveniles and are involved in more than half of all juvenile firearm offenses (see figure 4).
    
    
  • Most juvenile firearm offenses are committed with handguns, with only 18 percent involving shotguns or rifles.

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Seattle’s Effective Strategy for Prosecuting Juvenile Firearm Offenders	Juvenile Justice Bulletin • March 2000