According to the Juvenile Crime Statistics Report of 2008, there has been an overall decrease in juvenile arrests. There are four crimes i.e. non-negligent manslaughter, forced rape, robbery, and assault which are present on the Violent Crime Index. The rate of juvenile arrests in 2008 was lowest since the 1990s and only about 3% higher than those between 2001 and 2007. The arrests for rape were lowest since the 1980s, and the juvenile arrests for assault were also lowest since the year 1988 (OJJDP, 2008). The arrests for murder had first increased from 2005 till 2007 and then experienced a 5% decline till 2008. Nevertheless, the arrests for robbery had increased 46% since 2004 (Puzzanchera, 2009).
Drug abuse violations experienced a rise in the year 2008. Looking at previous records, between 1990 and 1997, the arrest rate for drug abuse was 145%. It was at its peak for white juveniles in 1997 and went down till 2008, about 13%. It fell 49% for black juveniles and then experienced an increase of 23%, falling only 13% in 2008. The arrest for simple assault was as high as 156% between 1980 and 1997, declining only slightly till 2002, then experiencing a rise again. However, the rate of simple assault was only a 10% low in 2008 than its rate in 1997 (Puzzanchera, 2009).
As far as female arrests are concerned, females accounted for 30% of juvenile arrests in 2008. The rates for female robbery grew in 2008, and the rate for aggravated assault was at 80% higher than the rate in 1980 (Puzzanchera, 2009). The American ethnic and racial composition are diverse. Black juveniles experienced overrepresentation in arrests and crimes, higher than whites, Hispanics, American Indians and Asian juveniles in almost all categories of crimes (Gottesman & Schwarz, 2011).
Male juvenile offenders for violent crimes experienced a decrease in number as compared to females, which experienced an increase in arrests. In 2008, the number of arrests for robbery was 43% for males and 51% for females. For aggravated assault, the numbers rose for females to about 80% more than those in the 1990s, while it decreased for males, falling to 4% (Puzzanchera, 2009).
Although making an assessment of juvenile crime rates is eased by tracking the arrest rates, it is also important to take note of juvenile behavior on its own. It is important that regional centers and other methods of gaining access to youth behavior are tracked and studied to get better insight. Moreover, the policies and laws in an area mist also are analyzed to check the arrest rates and what influences youth behaviors toward delinquency (Puzzanchera, 2009).
References
Gottesman, D., & Schwarz, S. W. (2011, July 12). Juvenile justice in the U.S. Retrieved August
9, 2016, from http://www.nccp.org/publications/pub_1038.html
OJJDP. (2008). Estimated the number of juvenile arrests, 2008. Retrieved August 9, 2016, from
http://www.ojjdp.gov/ojstatbb/crime/qa05101.asp?qaDate=2008
Puzzanchera, C. (2009). Juvenile Arrests 2008. Retrieved August 9, 2016, from
https://www.ncjrs.gov/pdffiles1/ojjdp/228479.pdf
