NCJ Number
175113
Date Published
Unknown
Length
387 pages
Annotation
This is a compilation of State statutory provisions relating to the possession of firearms by juveniles.
Abstract
Statistics compiled by the National Center for Juvenile Justice reveal that violent crime continues to increase and juveniles are responsible for a disproportionate share of the increase. The increasing juvenile proportion of violent crime arrests has been paralleled by the increasing proportion of violent crimes cleared by juvenile arrests. A National Institute of Justice study found that gang membership and involvement in drug sales appear to be highly associated with gun ownership among juvenile arrestees and that juveniles who had been violently victimized (i.e., threatened or shot at) were more likely to admit owning a gun. In 1994 there were 2,800 juvenile homicide offenders, roughly four times as many as in 1984. These trends show that youth violence in the United States is becoming increasingly more violent. Because handguns are becoming the most common weapon among juveniles who engage in violent criminal behavior, it is incumbent upon policy makers to develop comprehensive strategies to address this conduct. The Model Juvenile Handgun Code encourages States to adopt legislation that sets clear standards under which the possession of a handgun by a juvenile is unlawful. Appendix, notes, tables