TITLE: States at a Glance: Juveniles in Public Facilities, 1995 Series: OJJDP Fact Sheet Published: November 1997 Author: Joseph Moone Subject: Juvenile corrections 5 pages 8,786 bytes ------------------------------ U.S. Department of Justice Office of Justice Programs Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention States at a Glance: Juveniles in Public Facilities, 1995 by Joseph Moone ------------------------------ On February 15, 1995, public juvenile facilities held 69,075 juveniles in residential custody Public juvenile facilities include secure and nonsecure facilities used to hold pre- and postadjudicated individuals under the jurisdiction of the juvenile court. Just under 96 percent (66,236) of juveniles in public residential facilities were held for delinquent offenses, that is, offenses that would also be illegal if committed by an adult. A small number were held for status offenses, that is, offenses that are not illegal for individuals who have reached the age of majority or another age established by law. Status offenses include truancy, running away, possession of alcohol, and ungovernability. Only about 1 percent of juveniles in public facilities were placed in custody for other reasons, including dependency or neglect. Six States held half of all juveniles in custody in public facilities The aggregate juvenile custody population of a handful of States surpassed that of the remaining States. On February 15, 1995, California, Ohio, Texas, New York, Florida, and Illinois together held 50.4 percent (34,800) of the juveniles in custody in public facilities. California had the highest number of juveniles in custody in public facilities -- 19,567 (28 percent). The number of juveniles in custody is affected by differences in State laws, policies, and practices. For instance, the upper age of original or extended jurisdiction for juvenile court differs among the States. Within a State, whether a juvenile is subject to juvenile court jurisdiction may vary, depending on the specific offense with which the juvenile is charged. Some States also rely more heavily on private facilities, including facilities in other States, than others. Under California law, the California juvenile corrections system can hold offenders adjudicated in juvenile court much longer than other States' systems. In Connecticut, New York, and North Carolina, 16- and 17-year-olds are not subject to a juvenile court's delinquency jurisdiction. Ten other States set the maximum age for juvenile court jurisdiction at 16. The average State juvenile custody population in public facilities was 1,351 Considering the average population by State further illustrates the distribution of juveniles in custody in public facilities. The 15 States with larger than average juvenile custody populations accounted for 74 percent (51,145) of the overall population. Other indicators also show the asymmetry of the national juvenile custody population. The median custody population in juvenile facilities by State was 715. Only 12 percent of the juvenile custody population was found in States with populations below the median. Juvenile custody populations ranged from a low of 24 (Vermont) to a high of 19,567 (California). Most of the juveniles in custody in public facilities were held for delinquent offenses Only eight States (Tennessee, Montana, South Dakota, Missouri, Utah, Indiana, Hawaii, and Iowa) and the District of Columbia had a juvenile custody population that was less than 90 percent delinquent offenders. Nine States (Delaware, Florida, Idaho, Maine, New Hampshire, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, and West Virginia) held only delinquent offenders in public facilities. Nationally, about 96 percent of the juveniles in public facilities were in custody for a delinquent offense. Two-thirds of the remainder of the population in these facilities was made up of status offenders, with the balance being nonoffenders such as abused and neglected children. Nationally, only 2.6 percent of the juveniles in public facilities were there for status offenses such as running away, truancy, or liquor law violations associated with age. States with the largest percentage of status offenders in public facilities included Indiana (13.7 percent), Iowa (12.8 percent), Missouri (12.6 percent), and South Dakota (11.5 percent). Only a small number of juveniles were held in public facilities for nonoffenses such as dependency or neglect. Hawaii (17.8 percent) and Iowa (15.2 percent) held the largest percentages. Nineteen States did not hold any nonoffenders in their public facilities. This information comes from the 1995 Census of Juvenile Detention, Correctional, and Shelter Facilities Since 1971, the U.S. Department of Justice has conducted a biennial census of facilities that hold juveniles who have committed an offense. Each facility is requested to provide information on the number of juveniles held and the reason for custody. To allow for comparisons between censuses, the reference date for each biennial census is February 15. ------------------------------ Joseph Moone serves as Social Science Program Specialist in the Research and Program Development Division of OJJDP. ------------------------------ Nearly 96 percent of juveniles in public facilities nationally were there because of a delinquent offense Offense Type Total Juveniles Percent Total 69,075 100.0 Delinquent 66,236 95.9 Status 1,785 2.6 Other 889 1.3 Unknown* 165 0.2 * The responding agency was unable to classify these juveniles. ------------------------------ Juveniles in Public Facilities, by State: February 15, 1995 Total Total Total Total Population Delinquent Status Other Offenders United States 68,910 66,236 1,785 889 AL 908 882 22 4 AK 223 222 1 0 AZ 1,083 1,066 11 6 AR 275 274 0 1 CA 19,567 19,395 46 126 CO 776 771 5 0 CT 371 366 5 0 DE 164 164 0 0 DC 251 211 23 17 FL 2,674 2,674 0 0 GA 2,337 2,240 81 16 HI 101 73 10 18 ID 154 154 0 0 IL 2,641 2,620 19 2 IN 1,704 1,416 233 55 IA 461 332 59 70 KS 808 787 14 7 KY 593 561 25 7 LA 1,509 1,484 7 18 ME 369 369 0 0 MD 715 713 2 0 MA 331 307 20 4 MI 1,778 1,673 87 18 MN 803 724 62 17 MS 641 590 21 30 MO 1,037 901 131 5 MT 140 125 4 11 NE 419 415 4 0 NV 660 633 27 0 NH 125 125 0 0 NJ 1,999 1,900 46 53 NM 662 650 9 3 NY 2,862 2,711 151 0 NC 1,051 1,028 15 8 ND 97 96 1 0 OH 3,551 3,245 242 64 OK 392 371 8 13 OR 902 902 0 0 PA 1,487 1,407 54 26 RI 155 155 0 0 SC 1,062 1,031 24 7 SD 261 231 30 0 TN 974 870 44 60 TX 3,505 3,374 32 99 UT 465 395 31 39 VT 24 24 0 0 VA 2,211 2,042 106 63 WA 1,870 1,850 7 13 WV 148 148 0 0 WI 1,450 1,385 56 9 WY 164 154 10 0