Highlights of the 1999 National Youth Gang Survey

• NCJ Number: 185315
• Author(s): Arlen Egley Jr.
• Date Published: November 2000
• Length: 2 pages
• Publication Series: OJJDP Youth Gang Series
• Agencies: OJJDP
• Publication Type: Statistics

Annotation

This Fact Sheet presents highlights of the 1999 National Youth Gang Survey.

Abstract

The survey used information from 1,216 police departments serving cities with populations of 25,000 or more; 661 suburban county police and sheriff's departments; a randomly selected sample (n = 398) of police departments serving cities with populations between 2,500 and 24,999; and a randomly selected sample (n = 743) of rural county police and sheriff's departments. Of 3,018 recipients, 2,603 (86 percent) responded; 44 percent reported active youth gangs in their jurisdiction, down 4 percent from 1998. The most prevalent offenses among gang members were larceny/theft, aggravated assault and burglary/breaking and entering. An estimated 46 percent of youth gang members were involved in street drug sales to generate profits for the gang. While the estimated number of gangs (more than 26,000) decreased from 1998, the estimated number of gang members (more than 840,000) increased.