Disproportionate Minority Contact in the Juvenile Justice System: A Study of Differential Minority Arrest/Referral to Court in Three Cities

• NCJ Number: 219743
• Author(s): David Huizinga; Terence P. Thornberry; Kelly E. Knight; Peter Lovegrove; Rolf Loeber; Karl Hill; David P. Farrington
• Date Published: July 2007
• Length: 52 pages
• Grant Number(s): 1996-MU-FX-0012; 2005-JK-FX-0001; 1996-MU-FX-0017; 2005-JK-FX-0023; 1996-MU-FX-0014; 2001-MU-FX-0062
• Agencies: OJJDP-Sponsored
• Publication Type: Report (Study/Research)
• Award: Continuation PYS to analyze data on violence and serious Delinquency; FY 2003 OJJDP DISCRETIONARY CONTINUATION PROGRAMS-RESEARCH, EVALUATION AND STATISTICS; FY 2003 OJJDP DISCRETIONARY CONTINUATION PROGRAMS - RESEARCH, EVALUATION AND STATISTICS; PROGRAM OF RESEARCH ON THE CAUSES AND CORRELATES OF DELINQUENCY: A LONGITUDINAL MULTI-DISCIPLINARY STUDY OF DEVELOPMENT; Understanding Delinquency: A Longitudinal Multivariate Study of Developmental Patterns

Annotation

Using information from three community studies of delinquency (Pittsburg, Rochester, and Seattle), this federally supported report examines disproportionate minority contact (DMC) and factors that might affect DMC at the police contact/court referral level.

Abstract

Based on the findings, three main conclusions were warranted. First, there was clear evidence of disproportionate minority contact (DMC). At all three sites it was found that a greater proportion of minorities were police contacted/court referred. Second, DMC could not be explained by differences in the offending behavior of different racial groups. This finding was held true for a measure of total offending and for violent and property offenses as well. Third, DMC was substantially reduced by considering the combined effect of a number of additional risk factors for arrest. It appears that multiple risk factors do a better job of explaining DMC than does delinquent behavior. The weight of the evidence suggests that the effect of race/ethnicity on the chance of being contacted/referred are reduced but remains significant when both offending and risk are controlled. The findings suggest some further directions for research to more fully understand DMC at the initial contact/arrest/referral stage. For the past 50 years, researchers have been studying the degree to which race affects juvenile justice decisionmaking. More than one explanation has been given for DMC. Some argue that DMC is the result of racial bias within the juvenile justice system. Others argue that DMC is the result of minority youth committing more crimes, more serious crimes, or types of offenses that are more likely to come to the attention of the police. Still others argue that DMC is, in part, produced by risk factors for delinquency. Tables, references