Title: The Youngest Offenders, 1996 Series: OJJDP Fact Sheet #87 Author: Charles M. Puzzanchera Published: November 1998 Subject: Adjudication -- juvenile cases 4 pages 7,000 bytes ------------------------------ Figures, charts, forms, and tables are not included in this ASCII plain-text file. To view this document in its entirety, download the Adobe Acrobat graphic file available from this Web site or order a print copy from NCJRS at 800-851-3420. ------------------------------ U.S. Department of Justice Office of Justice Programs Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention November 1998 #87 The Youngest Offenders, 1996 by Charles M. Puzzanchera In 1996, youth under age 15 were involved in 32% of all juvenile arrests The majority of juvenile arrests involved youth age 15 or older (68%), while 9% of juvenile arrests involved youth under 13. Of all arrests of youth under 15, 30% were for larceny-theft or vandalism, 13% were for assaultive behaviors, 9% were for running away, 6% were for drug- or alcohol-related offenses, and 6% were for curfew violations. The arrest profile of youth under 15 varied from that of youth 15 and older. Compared with older juveniles, youth under 15 had a greater proportion of property offense arrests (40% vs. 20%), a greater proportion of person offense arrests (15% vs. 10%), and a smaller proportion of drug and alcohol arrests (6% vs. 18%). Since peaking in 1994, the violent crime arrest rate for youth under 15 has declined The violent crime arrest rate for youth under 15 gradually increased throughout the 1980's and peaked in 1994. For youth 15 and older, the violent crime arrest rate remained relatively stable from 1980 through 1987 and increased sharply from 1988 through 1994. For both groups, the violent crime arrest rate declined between 1994 and 1996 -- 15% for youth under 15 and 12% for youth 15 and older. Despite these declines, the 1996 violent crime arrest rate was still 60% higher than the 1980 rate for youth under 15 and 41% higher for youth 15 and older. While arrest rates for murder for both age groups increased between 1980 and 1993, the increase was greater for youth 15 and older. For both age groups, the murder arrest rate reached a peak in 1993 and declined by one-third between 1993 and 1996. Despite these declines, the 1996 murder arrest rate was 67% higher than the 1980 rate for youth 15 and older, and 37% higher for youth under 15. Since peaking in 1991, the property crime arrest rate for youth under 15 has declined Between 1980 and 1996, the property crime arrest rate varied more for youth 15 and older than for youth under 15. The property crime arrest rate remained relatively constant for youth under 15 during this period. For youth under 15, the property crime arrest rate peaked in 1991, then declined. The 1996 rate was almost identical to that in 1980. For youth 15 and older, the property crime arrest rate decreased sharply between 1980 and 1984, then increased steadily through 1991. From 1991 through 1996, the property crime arrest rate for youth 15 and older declined slightly (8%). The number of court cases involving youth under 15 increased 57% from 1986 to 1995 In 1995, juvenile courts handled an estimated 651,700 cases involving youth under 15, compared with 414,600 cases in 1986. A case represents one youth processed on a new referral, regardless of the number of offenses contained in that referral. An individual youth can be involved in more than one case during the year. Thirty-nine percent of all cases processed in 1995 involved youth under age 15. In 1995, the caseloads of youth under 15 contained a greater proportion of person offense cases (24% vs. 21%) and property offense cases (56% vs. 48%) and a smaller proportion of drug offense cases (5% vs. 12%) than those of youth 15 and older. In 1995, the caseloads of youth under 15 (36%) contained a slightly greater proportion of minority youth than those of youth 15 and older (33%). The racial characteristics of juveniles involved in person, property, and drug offense cases processed in 1995 varied between younger and older juveniles. Person offense cases involving youth under 15 (44%) contained a greater proportion of nonwhite youth than those involving youth 15 and older (41%). The same was true for property offense cases (33% and 28%, respectively). The proportion of drug offense cases involving nonwhite youth, however, did not vary between the two age groups. Caseload trends differed for younger and older youth Between 1986 and 1995, the number of cases referred to juvenile court increased 57% for youth under 15 and 39% for youth 15 and older. In the same period, person offense cases handled by juvenile courts increased 129% for youth under 15 and 81% for youth 15 and older. During the same period, drug offense cases processed by juvenile courts increased 136% for youth under 15 and 117% for youth 15 or older. Property offense cases increased 33% and 16%, respectively. Between 1986 and 1995, the proportion of cases referred to juvenile court increased 85% for nonwhite youth under 15 and 69% for nonwhite youth 15 and older. During the same period, the proportion of cases referred to juvenile court increased 45% for white youth under 15 and 27% for white youth 15 and older. ------------------------------ For further information This Fact Sheet is based in part on the report Juvenile Court Statistics 1995. Copies are available from the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention's (OJJDP's) Juvenile Justice Clearinghouse, 800-638-8736. OJJDP also supports distribution of a PC-compatible software version of the data analyzed in Juvenile Court Statistics. For a free copy of the software, Easy Access to Juvenile Court Statistics, call the National Juvenile Court Data Archive at the National Center for Juvenile Justice, 412-227- 6950. This software can also be downloaded from OJJDP's home page: www.ncjrs.org/ojjhome.htm. ------------------------------ Charles M. Puzzanchera is a Research Assistant with the National Juvenile Court Data Archive, which is supported by an OJJDP grant. FS-9887