Juvenile Offenders and Victims

Juvenile Offenders in Correctional Facilities

Juvenile correctional systems have many different components. Some juvenile correctional facilities look very much like adult prisons. Others seem very much like "home." Private facilities continue to play a substantial role in the long-term residential treatment of juveniles, in contrast to adult correctional systems. In fact, nationwide there are slightly more privately operated juvenile facilities than publicly operated facilities, although private facilities hold less than half as many juveniles as are held in public facilities.

This chapter describes the population of juveniles detained in and committed to public and private facilities in terms of demographics, offenses, average time in the facility, and facility type. The chapter also includes descriptions of juveniles held in adult jails and prisons.

The information is based on several data collection efforts by the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention: the Census of Juveniles in Residential Placement, the Juvenile Residential Facility Census, and the Survey of Youth in Residential Placement. The information on juveniles held in adult correctional facilities is drawn from the Bureau of Justice Statistics' Jail Census, Annual Survey of Jails, and National Corrections Reporting Program.