Serious Offender - An Exploratory Study (From Louisville/Jefferson County, Kentucky - Metropolitan Social Services Department - Juvenile Court Interim Annual Report, January-December, 1976)

• NCJ Number: 82097
• Author(s): M F Siebold; T A Hildenbrand
• Date Published: Unknown
• Length: 25 pages
• Corporate Author: Louisville/Jefferson Cty
• Sale Source: National Institute of Justice/
• Publication Type: Report (Study/Research)
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

Court records from Louisville and Jefferson County, Ky. were used as the basis for a study of the characteristics of juvenile offenders who commit serious property or violent offenses.

Abstract

A random sample of 290 offenders was taken from over 2,000 serious offenders referred to the juvenile court in 1974. A total of 238 sets of usable records were obtained. Data were gathered on age, sex, race, living arrangement, number of siblings, income, receipt of public assistance, and school status. Other information concerned the youth's prior history, age at first offense, admission of guilt, disposition, length of followup, recidivism, and residential location. Serious offenses included arson, aggravated assault, burglary, residential breakins, rape, grand larceny, murder, purse snatching, robbery, and commercial breakins. The most common offenses were grand larceny, residential breakins, and commercial breakins. Robbery and assault were the two most common crimes against persons. A total of 23 percent of the cases involved offenses against persons. While serious offenses were found to have increased substantially in the past 25 years, the increase has been proportional to the increase in all offenses. Blacks had a greater probability of committing an offense against persons than did whites. Juveniles below age 14 had a greater probability of committing a property offense, while those above age 16 had a greater chance of committing an offense against persons. Those involved in offenses against persons received treatment dispositions more often than did property offenders. Juveniles who were older at the time of the first offense were less likely to commit another serious offense in the followup period than were younger juveniles. Serious offenders with prior offense histories also were more likely to commit additional serious offenses. Those who received a treatment disposition, especially institutionalization, were more likely to commit further serious offenses. However, those receiving probation did not have a disproportionate chance of committing additional serious offenses. Findings indicated the need for early intervention, especially with juveniles prone to violence. Tables and footnotes are provided.