NCJ Number
148535
Date Published
1992
Length
193 pages
Annotation
A hearing was convened by the Senate Committee on Governmental Affairs in March 1992 to address strategies for preventing youth violence.
Abstract
The opening statement noted that young males between 15 and 34 years of age are the most likely to die as the result of homicide; that nonhomicidal violent crimes, such as aggravated assault, simple assault, and rape, are most likely to be committed by people under 25 years of age; and that firearms are the weapons of choice for most violent acts. Testimony on youth violence prevention was presented by individuals representing the General Accounting Office, a New York high school, the Police Chief's Youth Task Force in the District of Columbia, university professors, a research analyst from the Urban Institute, a nurse, and a scientist from Harvard University. Hearing witnesses discussed various youth violence prevention strategies, the need to coordinate programs, the link between drugs and violence, the role of parents in violence prevention, televised violence, victims of violence, family intervention and school-based violence prevention programs, and child abuse. An appendix contains additional prepared statements of hearing witnesses, an article on the collapse of inner city families, and charts submitted by the Centers for Disease Control that characterize homicide rates in the United States. Endnotes, tables, and figures