NCJ Number
153691
Date Published
1994
Length
106 pages
Annotation
Based on data from a variety of sources, this report examines trends in juvenile crime, juvenile justice system activity, and delivery of selected social services to juveniles in Illinois. Many analyses contained in this report were performed on a regional basis across the State.
Abstract
In 1992, juveniles accounted for 9 percent of all people taken into police custody for total Index offenses, 6 percent of those taken into custody for violent Index offenses, 10 percent of persons taken into custody for property Index offenses, and 14 percent of those taken into custody for drug offenses. Between 1984 and 1992, the juvenile population decreased in all regions of Illinois; during this time, there was an 18 percent decrease in the number of juveniles arrested for property offenses, but a 16 percent increase in the number of juveniles arrested for violent offenses. Across all regions and offense types analyzed, the rate at which black juveniles were arrested relative to their proportion in the population exceeded the rates for both whites and Hispanics. Between 1983 and 1994, 75 percent of all petitions filed in Illinois' juvenile court were for delinquency. There was also a dramatic increase during the reporting period in the number of automatic juvenile transfers to adult court. The number of juvenile court commitments between 1988 and 1992 increased substantially, while juvenile admissions to residential mental health treatment programs between 1983 and 1992 fell by about 11 percent. Reported and verified cases of child abuse and neglect, child sexual abuse, and substance-affected births increased dramatically in Illinois during the reporting period. 54 figures and 9 tables