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Juveniles in Court
Case Rate Trends
Between 2005 and 2020, the person offense case rate decreased most for Asian/NHPI youth (68%), followed by Black youth (62%), Hispanic youth (58%), white youth (56%), and American Indian youth (42%).

Person offenses
Cases per 1,000 youth ages 10-upper age by Race

Year White* Black* Hispanic American
Indian 		Asian/NHPI*
2005 9.77 34.28 9.92 10.35 3.37
2006 9.21 32.83 9.38 9.70 3.22
2007 9.06 32.85 9.50 9.57 2.87
2008 8.83 32.74 9.26 8.70 2.73
2009 8.22 29.71 8.40 7.84 2.46
2010 7.84 28.07 7.94 7.78 2.17
2011 7.38 26.06 7.26 7.31 2.01
2012 6.87 24.11 6.46 7.17 1.76
2013 6.12 23.10 5.83 6.56 1.49
2014 5.70 22.24 5.58 6.36 1.29
2015 5.64 20.60 5.76 5.72 1.21
2016 5.44 19.92 5.55 5.94 1.20
2017 5.56 19.43 5.48 5.95 1.18
2018 5.68 18.70 5.71 6.62 1.30
2019 5.70 18.90 5.74 6.65 1.47
2020 4.29 12.98 4.20 6.02 1.07

Note: Rates are cases per 1,000 youth ages 10-upper age of juvenile court jurisdiction.
*Excludes persons of Hispanic ethnicity. Persons of Hispanic ethnicity can be of any race.

It is important to note that 2020 was the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, which may have impacted policies, procedures, and data collection activities regarding referrals to and processing of youth by juvenile courts. Additionally, stay-at-home orders and school closures likely impacted the volume and type of law-violating behavior by youth referred to juvenile court in 2020.

[ Graph version ] [ CSV file]

  • The person offense case rate for Black youth in 2020 was well above the rate for other race groups: 2.2 times the rate for American Indian youth, 3.0 times the rate for white youth, 3.1 times the rate for Hispanic youth, and 12.1 times the rate for Asian/NHPI youth.

Internet Citation: OJJDP Statistical Briefing Book. Online. Available:
https://www.ojjdp.gov/ojstatbb/court/JCSCR_Display.asp?ID=qa06251. January 10, 2023.

 

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