NCJ Number
55437
Date Published
1978
Length
343 pages
Annotation
THE RELATIONSHIPS AMONG DEMOGRAPHIC VARIABLES AND ARREST PATTERN VARIABLES ARE EXAMINED USING A SAMPLE OF 811 OHIO JUVENILES ARRESTED FOR OFFENSES.
Abstract
A SECONDARY GOAL OF THIS STUDY WAS THE CHARTING OF THE DYNAMIC PROCESS OF VIOLENT DELINQUENT CAREERS. DEMOGRAPHIC VARIABLES EXAMINED IN THIS STUDY WERE RACE, SEX, AND SOCIOECONOMIC STATUS. TYPE OF VIOLENT OFFENSE, AGE AT ONSET, AGE AT FIRST VIOLENT OFFENSE, NUMBER OF TOTAL ARRESTS, NUMBER OF VIOLENT ARRESTS, AND SPACING BETWEEN ALL ARRESTS WERE SOME OF THE VARIABLES CHOSEN TO ILLUSTRATE ARREST PATTERN CHARACTERISTICS. ALL YOUTHS BORN IN THE YEARS 1956 THROUGH 1960 WHO HAD BEEN ARRESTED FOR AT LEAST ONE VIOLENT OFFENSE IN THE CITY OF COLUMBUS, OHIO, WERE SELECTED FOR THIS STUDY. THE METHODOLOGY USED IS UNIQUE BECAUSE FEW LONGITUDINAL ANALYSES OF BIRTH COHORTS HAVE BEEN ATTEMPTED. IT WAS FOUND THAT THE 811 YOUTHS ARRESTED CONSTITUTED 1.6 PERCENT OF THE TOTAL YOUTH POPULATION. THE COHORT CONSTITUTED 5.1 PERCENT OF THE DELINQUENT YOUTH POPULATION. IT WAS ALSO FOUND THAT OVER HALF OF THE COHORT ARE BLACK; 84.4 PERCENT MALE, AND 85.7 PERCENT WERE BELOW THE MEDIAN INCOME LEVEL. IT WAS FURTHER FOUND THAT APPROXIMATELY 50 PERCENT OF THE VIOLENT YOUTHS LIVED WITH BOTH PARENTS. ABOUT ONE-QUARTER OF THE YOUTHS HAD BEEN COMMITTED AT LEAST ONCE TO THE OHIO YOUTH COMMISSION. IN ADDITION, THE DATA REVEALED THAT NEARLY A THIRD OF THE COHORTS WERE ARRESTED ONLY ONCE IN THEIR JUVENILE CAREERS, AND THIS WAS FOR A VIOLENT OFFENSE. MALES WERE FOUND TO AVERAGE NEARLY TWICE AS MANY ARRESTS AS FEMALES. FEWER THAN A THIRD OF THE TOTAL ARRESTS WERE FOR VIOLENT OFFENSES. OTHER DEMOGRAPHIC FINDINGS ARE PRESENTED. TABLES, FIGURES, AND A LIST OF REFERENCES ARE PROVIDED.