Delinquency Case Rate Trends

Although the delinquency case rate is much higher for males than females, the female rate increased more than the male rate between 1985 and 2010.

Delinquency Case Rates for All Delinquency Offenses by Sex, 1985-2010

Delinquency Case Rates for All Delinquency Offenses by Sex

Note: Rates are cases per 1,000 youth ages 10-upper age of juvenile court jurisdiction.

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For both males and females, the delinquency case rate increased from 1985 through the mid-1990s. For males, the rate increased 38% to reach a peak in 1996 then fell 37% by 2010, resting at its lowest level since at least 1985. Comparatively, the female rate reached a peak in 1997, 76% above the 1985 rate. This increase was followed by a 20% decline between 1997 and 2010.
The disparity between male and female delinquency case rates declined between 1985 and 2010. In 1985, the delinquency case rate for males was about 4 times greater than the rate for females; by 2010, the male rate was less than 2.5 times the female rate - 61.1 compared with 24.8.

Internet Citation: OJJDP Statistical Briefing Book. Online. Available:
http://www.ojjdp.gov/ojstatbb/court/JCSCR_Display.asp?ID=qa06240. April 17, 2013.

Adapted from Juvenile Court Statistics 2009. Forthcoming. Pittsburgh, PA: National Center for Juvenile Justice.