Youth Violence, Guns, and the Illicit-Drug Industry (From Trends, Risks, and Interventions in Lethal Violence: Proceedings of the Third Annual Spring Symposium of the Homicide Research Working Group, P 3-15, 1995, Carolyn Block and Richard Block, eds.)

• NCJ Number: 159891
• Author(s): A Blumstein; H J Heinz III
• Date Published: 1995
• Length: 13 pages
• Sponsoring Agency: Office of Justice Programs (OJP)
• Sale Source: National Institute of Justice/NCJRS
• Publication Type: Survey
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America
• Note: *This document is currently unavailable from NCJRS. NIJ Research Report. Youth, Guns, and Violence. See NCJ- 154254 for complete document.

Annotation

This paper discusses some trends in age-specific crime rates, focusing on youth involvement in violent crime and drug offenses.

Abstract

The paper documents statistics showing that the homicide rate by youth aged 18 and under doubled between 1985 and 1992, that the number of homicides committed by juveniles using guns doubled during the same time frame, and that the arrest rate of nonwhite juveniles on drug charges also doubled during the period. At the same time, there was no growth in homicide rates by adults over the age of 23 years, no change in the rate of non-gun homicides, and no change in the rate of drug-related arrests for white juveniles. The authors suggest that these changes involve a process that is driven by the illegal drug markets. The illicit drug industry recruits juveniles; the poor economic outlook for many urban black juveniles makes them particularly vulnerable to such offers. The data support a strong correlation between violence and involvement with illegal drug trafficking. Immediate and long-term policy implications are outlined. 5 figures, 12 notes, and 11 references