Juvenile Crime and Victimization
In 2001, there were 1617 homicides in the United States in the
population of youth between the ages of 13 and 19. Two hundred
and sixty-three juvenile females were murdered and 1352 juvenile
males were murdered. (Federal Bureau of Investigation
2002. Crime in the United States, Uniform Crime Reports, 2001.
Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Justice.)
Sixty-four percent of the homicide victims under the age of 22
were killed with a firearm in 2001. (Ibid.)
Of the 38,000 juveniles murdered between 1980 and 1997, juvenile
offenders were involved in 26 percent of the crimes where an offender
was identified. Sixty-three percent of the juveniles killed by
other juveniles were 15 years or older and a firearm was used 77
percent of the time. (National Center for Juvenile
Justice. 1999. Juvenile Offenders and Victims: 1999 National
Report. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Justice. Office
of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention.)
The end of the school day is the period when juveniles are at
the greatest risk of victimization. (Ibid.)
For every two youths under the age of 19 murdered in 1996, one
youth committed suicide. Seven percent of all suicide victims in
1996 were nineteen or younger. (Ibid.)
According to the National Crime Victimization Survey, youth between
the ages of 12 and 19 experienced over 1,798,010 non-fatal violent
victimizations in 2001, rates which are significantly higher than
any other age group. (Bureau of Justice Statistics.
September 2002. Criminal Victimization 2001. Washington,
DC: U.S. Department of Justice.)
Among youths between the ages of 12 and 19, there were an estimated
82,440 rapes and sexual assaults in 2001; an estimated 187,020
robberies, an estimated 339,180 aggravated assaults; an estimated
1,189,020 simple assaults, and an estimated 56,040 thefts,
i.e., pocket picking and purse snatching. (Ibid.)
Almost 70 percent of female youth in the juvenile justice system
have histories of physical abuse compared to 20 percent of juvenile
females in the general population. (Lederman,
C. and Brown, E. 2000. "Entangled in the shadows: Girls in
the juvenile justice system." Buffalo Law Review. Buffalo,
NY: Univ.of Buffalo Law School.)
The odds of being a victim of domestic violence as an adult are
increased by a factor of 1.7 by being an adolescent victim of a
violent crime. The odds of being a perpetrator of domestic violence
as an adult are increased by a factor of 1.7 by being a victim
of violent crime in adolescence and doubled by being a perpetrator
of violent crime in adolescence. (Office of
Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention. 2001. Addressing
Youth Victimization: Action Plan Update. Washington, DC: U.S.
Department of Justice.)
Sixty-five percent of the offenders incarcerated in state correctional
facilities for crimes against juveniles in 1997 were sex offenders. (Office
of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention. December 2001. Offenders
Incarcerated For Crimes Against Juveniles. Washington, DC:
U.S. Department of Justice.)
Forty-eight percent of offenders incarcerated for crimes against
juveniles in state correctional facilities had victimized someone
in their family or their household and 38 percent had victimized
an acquaintance. (Ibid.)
Active youth gangs are present in 100 percent of the nation's
largest cities; 47 percent of metropolitan areas with large suburbs;
27 percent of the small cities, and 18 percent of the rural counties. (Office
of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention. December 2001. Hybrid
and Other Modern Gangs. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of
Justice.)
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| National Crime Victims' Rights
Week: Fulfill the Promise |
April 6–12, 2003 |
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