OJJDP and the National Institute of Justice have released Trends in Youth Arrests for Violent Crimes.
The fact sheet describes a decline since the mid-2000s in the estimated number of youth arrests for violent crimes, including murder, robbery, and aggravated assault.
"These data reflect an encouraging trend—one that has in fact been developing over the last three decades—and offer a welcome counter-narrative to claims that youth crime is on the rise," said OJJDP Administrator Liz Ryan.
The fact sheet draws on data from the Federal Bureau of Investigation's Uniform Crime Reporting Program. Overall, arrests of youth have been on the decline for more than a decade, but patterns vary by demographic group and offense.
Key findings include:
- By 2020, the number of violent crime arrests involving youth reached a new low—78 percent below its 1994 peak.
- In 2020, there were an estimated 424,300 arrests involving youth younger than 18, a 38 percent drop from the previous year.
- The proportion of violent crime arrests involving youth fell from 14 percent in 2010 to 7 percent in 2020.
RESOURCES:
- See OJJDP's Statistical Briefing Book for new a Data Snapshot that draws on national estimates to document trends in youth arrests through 2020.
- Follow OJJDP on Twitter and Facebook.