NCJ Number
133778
Date Published
1989
Length
32 pages
Annotation
Characteristics of juveniles arrested for serious offenses are compared with those of a sample of juveniles arrested for selected offenses in Honolulu.
Abstract
Robbery was the most frequent of the serious offenses and shoplifting and other thefts were the most frequent of the selected offenses. Most of the individual characteristics of serious offenders and of selected offenders were similar, particularly age of repeat arrestees, first offenders, sex, school, and ethnic group. However, on the basis of these findings, juveniles arrested for serious offenses are characterized as having a higher proportion of other arrest charges in and before 1985 as well as higher proportion of repeat offenses, male arrestees, and referrals to Family Court than those arrested for selected offenses. This group also reports a lower proportion of parental employment and marital status and a higher proportion of reported histories of abuse, only children status, deceased parents, and non-parent guardians. In addition these results show that juveniles arrested for serious offenses are at a higher risk than those arrested for selected offenses of continuing their offending behaviors to adulthood as evidenced by the higher number of arrests as adults. Of those arrested as adults, a higher proportion were arrested for serious offenses. This comparative study suggests that family income and family structure affect the nature of the offense and that arrest history may affect the nature of subsequent offenses.