Shay Bilchik, Administrator	December 1999

Juvenile Arrests 1998 Introduction The U.S. murder rate in 1998 was the lowest since 1967 The juvenile share of the crime problem decreased in 1998 In 1998, 27% of juvenile arrests were arrests of females Juvenile arrests disproportionately involved minorities Compared with adult violence, a smaller proportion of juvenile violence was directed toward family members Juvenile arrests for violence in 1998 were the lowest in a decade Few juveniles were arrested for violent crime Juvenile arrests for property crimes declined substantially in 1998 Most arrested juveniles were referred to court Crime statistics Notes Data source note Acknowledgments This Bulletin was prepared under cooperative agreement number 95-JN-FX-K008 from the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, U.S. Department of Justice. Points of view or opinions expressed in this document are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the official position or policies of OJJDP or the U.S. Department of Justice. The Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention is a component of the Office of Justice Programs, which also includes the Bureau of Justice Assistance, the Bureau of Justice Statistics, the National Institute of Justice, and the Office for Victims of Crime.

From the Administrator A decade of public attention to the problem of juvenile violence is bearing fruit. The reduction in violent juvenile crime is reflected in arrest data for 1998. Juvenile arrests for violent crime are 19% below their peak in 1994. The number of juvenile arrests for murder decreased 48% from 1994 to 1998. The number of juvenile arrests for each violent crime category and the percentage of violent crimes cleared by juvenile arrests also have declined—despite continuing growth in the juvenile population. Such good news, however, should not foster complacency nor lead us to weaken our efforts to combat violent juvenile crime, which despite decreases is still too prevalent. Rather, we need to build on these accomplishments with the implementation of additional effective prevention programs and a stronger juvenile justice system. This type of response will further reduce the level of juvenile violence that endangers our communities and will address other problem behaviors that prevent youth from achieving their potential. Juvenile Arrests 1998 provides a summary and analysis of national and State juvenile arrest data reported in the FBI's October 1999 report, Crime in the United States 1998. With sound information such as this and a solid commitment to supporting healthy, law-abiding youth, we can continue to make progress in reducing juvenile crime. Shay Bilchik Administrator