NCJ Number
243932
Date Published
October 2008
Length
52 pages
Annotation
This study examined the role that weapons play when juvenile offenders are processed through adult courts in New York City.
Abstract
Major findings from this study include the following: more than half of the juveniles processed through adult courts in New York City were charged with a weapon-related offense; 13 percent of the juveniles had a weapon charge on a prior arrest; juveniles prosecuted in Brooklyn were more likely to have gun charges (28 percent) compared to Manhattan and Queens (13 percent and 12 percent, respectively), and were more likely to have a gun charge on a prior arrest than juveniles in other boroughs; weapon charges were more frequent among juveniles charged with murder and attempted murder; and disposition by trial was twice as likely to occur for juveniles charged with a gun offense as compared with juveniles charged with a non-weapon-related offense. The study also found that while re-arrest rates were higher for juveniles charged with a weapon-related offense, the increase in these rates was not statistically significant. This study was conducted to determine the long-term impact of weapon offenses on re-arrest rates among juvenile offenders prosecuted through adult courts in New York City. Data for the study were obtained from court records of all juvenile offenders (JOs) processed through adult courts in New York City between January 1997 and December 2000. The court outcomes and re-arrest rates for these JOs were tracked through January 31, 2005. The study's findings indicate that JOs charged with a weapons-related offense are not at a higher risk of re-arrest and that other factors may play more of role in risk for re-arrest. Tables, figures, and appendix