Youth and Crime Project, Part 1 - Age and Crime

• NCJ Number: 93366
• Author(s): S K Mukherjee
• Date Published: 1983
• Length: 75 pages
• Corporate Author: Australian Institute of Criminology
• Sale Source: Australian Institute of Criminology
• Publication Type: Report (Study/Research)
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

An analysis of arrest data from Australia, the United Kingdom, and the United States concludes that there is absolutely no evidence to indicate that juveniles are committing more serious and violent crime than ever before.

Abstract

The study first compares data on arrests of juveniles between age l0 and l6-l7 in the three countries between l960 and l980 for homicide, aggravated assault, robbery, burglary, motor vehicle theft, and fraud or forgery. In all three countries, juvenile boys and girls account for far less a proportion of homicide arrests than their proportion in the population. Moreover, recent trends show that among the arrested population the proportion of boys is declining. Arrest rates for girls are higher than those of adult women in some instances, although females still constitute a small part of all arrests. Although youth participation in offenses such as robbery, burglary, larceny, and automobile theft has been higher than their proportion in the general population, the extent of participation varies according to offense type. Analysis suggests an inverse relationship between youth participation and seriousness of the property offense, with robbery attracting the fewest youths. While property offenses appear to decline as juveniles move into young adulthood, violent crime does not. Finally, violence in the family is almost exclusively perpetuated by adults. An analysis of arrest data between l972 and l980 for eight Australian jurisdictions also demonstrates that juveniles are not involved in homicide and serious assault in numbers disproportionate to their population nor is their number escalating at an unprecedented rate. Analyses of arrest data and burglaries estimated in victimization studies from Australia suggest that, if all burglaries are reported and if all are cleared by arrest, one in every two juveniles would be arrested each year. If one accepts the premise that juveniles commit less serious offenses and that most property offenses are not cleared, two possibilities emerge: many serious property offenders are on the loose and juveniles are arrested unnecessarily, possibly to bolster the clearance rate. Suggestions for future research, tables, and 38 footnotes are supplied.