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The NCJRS Abstracts Database contains abstracts of more than 215,000 criminal justice, juvenile justice, and substance abuse resources housed within the NCJRS Library. Search the NCJRS Abstracts Database for resources on this topic.
 
 
Juveniles at a Glance
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Juveniles

The United States (U.S.) Census Bureau estimates that there were approximately 73.8 million youth under the age of 18 in the United States in 2011.[1] State statutes define which youth are in the original jurisdiction of the juvenile court, and it varies from state to state; the upper age limit for this jurisdiction ranges from 15 to 17.[2] In 2009, courts with juvenile jurisdiction disposed more than 1.5 million delinquency cases.[3]

Fast Facts

  • In 2008, an estimated 60% of children in the United States were exposed to violence, crime, or abuse in their homes, schools, and communities within the past year. Approximately 46% were assaulted at least once in the past year and 10% were injured in an assault.[4]

  • Child protective services agencies investigated nearly 2 million reports of maltreatment involving more than 3.5 million children in 2010. More than one-third of maltreatment victims were infants or toddlers (ages 0-3) with neglect being the most pervasive form of maltreatment (62% of cases).[5]

  • In 2009 there were 262 arrests for violent crime offenses for every 100,000 youth ages 10-17. The juvenile arrest rate (ages 10-17) had fallen 47% from its peak level in 1994.[6]

  • The victimization rate for non-Hispanic black youth in 2010 was approximately twice the rate for non-Hispanic white youth, and juvenile males reported higher victimization rates than juvenile females.[7]

  • Violent crime committed by juvenile offenders peaks during the after school hours. Nearly one-third (29%) of all violent crime committed by juvenile offenders occurs between 3 p.m. and 7 p.m. In comparison, nearly the same proportion of violent crime committed by adults (26%) occurs between the hours of 8 p.m. and 12 a.m.[8]

  • In 2010, juvenile offenders were known to be involved in 8% of all homicides in the United States.[9]

  • From July 2009, through June 2010, there were 17 homicides and 1 suicide of school-age youth (ages 5-18) in schools. This is there approximately one homicide or suicide per 2.7 million students enrolled during the 2009-2010 school year. Higher percentages of black, Hispanic, and American Indian/Alaskan Native students reported being threatened or injured with a weapon on school property than white students.[10]

  • In 2009, 22% of arrests involving youth who were eligible in their state for processing in the juvenile justice system were handled within law enforcement agencies and the youth were released. 67% were referred to juvenile court, and 9% were referred directly to criminal court.[11]