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Not Just From the Wrong Side of the Tracks Anymore

NCJ Number
227992
Journal
Law Enforcement Technology Volume: 36 Issue: 6 Dated: June 2009 Pages: 16,18,21
Author(s)
Carole Moore
Date Published
June 2009
Length
5 pages
Annotation
This article discusses the rise of juvenile crime committed by affluent juvenile offenders.
Abstract
Kids who do not fit the mold of typical juvenile offenders are becoming more commonplace. Cyber crimes, bullying, property offenses, and vandalism perpetrated by affluent teens or young girls have become commonplace. Hardcore substance abuse of drugs like heroin, once associated with poverty and desperation, are increasingly present in million dollar homes and on college campuses. Entirely new classifications of crime are steadily emerging as technology gives ordinary people an opportunity to reach new heights of criminal behavior; kids ready to explore new frontiers are finding that the high tech media offers an attractive cornucopia of innovative ways to commit crime. According to a Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) report tracking juvenile offender statistics for a 10-year period from 1993 to 2003, juveniles were identified as offenders in 25 percent of all nonfatal violent juvenile offenses. Among juvenile offenders in violent crimes, 25 percent were female. The predominant offender's race in juvenile-perpetrated violent crimes was White. Drug and alcohol use were present in approximately 10 percent of the cases highlighted by the BJS report.