Cja 374 Juvenile Crime Statistics Paper

Juvenile Crime Statistics
Name
Juvenile Justice Systems and Processes/CJA 374
Date
Instructor

Juvenile Crime Statistics
Captured statistics from the Uniform Crime Reports in 2008 demonstrate a decline in overall juvenile arrests. Even though the overall arrest rate declined, separate demographics within the overall statistics exhibited slight increases based on race or gender. Increases in certain violations also increased based on gender and race. However, the tracking of trends in juvenile crimes shows law enforcement where to focus its energies in attempts to lower juvenile crime rates and which demographics require more attention.
According to Puzzanchera (2009), American law enforcement arrested an estimated 2.11 million juveniles
under the age of 18. The statistics demonstrated a decrease of three percent from 2007 in the overall juvenile arrest rate. The statistics also report a two percent decline in juvenile violent crime arrest rates. These rates also demonstrate a downward trend of juvenile arrests from the peak of 1994 for every age group under 40 even though juveniles accounted for 16 percent of all violent crime arrests and 26 percent of all property crime arrests in 2008 (Puzzanchera, 2009).
Juvenile arrests for simple assaults and drug offenses showed a significant increase beginning in the 1980s.
Juvenile arrests for simple assault increased 156 percent until 1997, dipped until 2002, and increased again through 2006. After the increase through 2006, the rate declined until 2008. However, the rate was 10 percent below the 1997 peak in 2008 (Puzzanchera, 2009). Juvenile arrests for drug offenses showed a similar increase. The rate increased 145 percent for drug offenses. The rate increased from 1980 to 1997, and it began a decrease from 1997 to 2008. However, the rate was 78 percent higher than the 1990 rate (Puzzanchera,
2009).
Law enforcement officers arrested 629,800 female juveniles in 2008 (Grigorenko, 2012). Even though male juvenile arrests outnumber females, female juvenile arrests are increasing. A few theories explain the increase in female juvenile arrests. Standards from the 1800s to the late 1980s protected females from arrests for the “girl’s protection.” Society believed protecting females from arrests or incarcerations provided them a benefit from possible trauma related to the justice system (Grigorenko, 2012). Another theory relates to the change in focus on policy changes and enforcement tactics. Policy changes such as increases in domestic violence laws and enforcing minor laws including status offenses increased the juvenile arrest rates. Others theorize an increase in female gang membership and the resulting commission of crimes by females in gangs increased the arrest rate for females (Grigorenko, 2012). These theories provide the idea female juveniles previously committed crimes, but the arrest rates are increasing because of policy changes causing a capture of more accurate statistics.
Minority juvenile arrests were higher than White juvenile arrests reported in 2008.
Black juveniles took a higher percentage in most violent crime arrests such as murder, robbery, rape, assaultive offenses, thefts, burglaries, and weapon offenses than other races (Puzzanchera, 2009). However, the racial threat theory provides a possible explanation for the increase in all minority juvenile arrest rates. The theory states as minority population increases, the growth threatens Whites resulting in increased police action against the predominant minority (Siegel & Welsh, 2009). The increased police action may include increased patrol of minority neighborhoods resulting in increased contact with minorities. The increased contact results in higher interview rates and increased arrest rates. The reported arrest rates inflate the percentages of arrested minority youth resulting in potentially skewered rates. These erroneous results can create an unnecessary shift in focus for law enforcement resulting in higher incidences of racial profiling or policy changes regarding the arrests of certain minorities (Siegel & Welsh,
2009).
Tracking juvenile arrests rates appears to show trends in juvenile crimes. However, the tracking does a better job of tracking potential problems with policies and law enforcement focus on different demographics within the juvenile population. The trends exhibited in female juvenile arrest rates indicate female juvenile arrests increased because of the policy shift in more proactive police functions regarding minor crimes and the improvements in domestic violence laws requiring detention of offenders regardless of gender. The trends also indicate law enforcement actions may increase against certain minorities as police focus heavier crime reduction efforts in minority neighborhoods. Therefore, the trends demonstrated when measuring juvenile crime may be ineffectual in providing accurate results. However, tracking juvenile arrests can provide law enforcement a means to measure its own actions regarding enforcement of regulations.

Reference
Grigorenko, E. (2012). Handbook of juvenile forensic psychology and psychiatry. New York, NY: Springer Science.
Puzzanchera, C. U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention. (2009). Juvenile arrests 2008. Retrieved from website: https://www.ncjrs.gov/
Siegel, L., & Welsh, B. (2009). Juvenile delinquency: Theory, practice, and law. (11th ed.). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth Cengage.