Children in Custody: Public Juvenile Facilities, 1987

• NCJ Number: 113950
• Author(s): B Allen-Hagen
• Date Published: 1988
• Length: 8 pages
• Corporate Author: Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP)
• Sale Source: National Institute of Justice/; NCJRS Photocopy Services
• Publication Type: Survey
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America
• Note: Juvenile Justice Bulletin, October 1988

Annotation

This publication presents data from a nationwide survey of 1,107 public juvenile facilities which provided custodial care for more than 53,503 juveniles in 1987 at a cost of $1.46 billion.

Abstract

Findings indicate the volume of juvenile admissions and discharges has reached the highest level since 1977. Of those confined, 84 percent were males, 82 percent were between the ages of 14 and 17, more than 50 percent were minorities, and 94 percent were being held for delinquent offenses that would be crimes if committed by adults. Survey results indicate a 12 percent decrease in burglary, arson, larceny-theft, and motor vehicle theft, and a 36 percent increase in property and alcohol/drug offenses, and public order violations committed by juveniles in custody. The rising costs of operating public facilities, confining juveniles to institutional environments, long-term facilities operated by States compared to short-term facilities operated by county and city agencies, and regional differences in custody rates also are discussed. Tabular data.