NCJ Number
160800
Date Published
1995
Length
14 pages
Annotation
This paper presents statistics on child victimization and juvenile violence and emphasizes the need to use the results of research and evaluation in policymaking designed to address these problems.
Abstract
A child in the United States is abused or neglected every 13 seconds, born to a teenage mother every 59 seconds, born into poverty every 30 seconds, arrested for a violent crime every 5 minutes, and killed by a gun every 2 hours. If these trends are not reversed and even if arrest rates remain constant, the number of arrests for violent juvenile crimes will increase by 22 percent by the year 2010. Juvenile dependency courts and juvenile courts must currently operate with a shortage of resources that prevent full attention to every case. Using research results to improve policies and programs is essential, but these efforts must be planned and implemented as part of a strategy. In 1993, OJJDP developed a comprehensive strategy for addressing the serious, violent, and chronic juvenile offender. It has published a guide that links the process of assessing community, family, and system strengths and weaknesses to the research on effective and promising approaches and programs. The strategy consists of six core principles. OJJDP will use the guide in training and technical assistance efforts. The strategy and guide provide a tremendous opportunity for communities to address problems of juvenile delinquency and violence. Case examples