NCJ Number
139059
Date Published
1992
Length
31 pages
Annotation
This data source book for New Jersey's juvenile justice system presents information on juvenile arrests, the court processing of juveniles, probation, detention, and corrections.
Abstract
There were 89,782 juvenile arrests in New Jersey in 1991. Five common offense arrest categories together accounted for 52.7 percent of all arrests: larceny-theft (16.1 percent), disorderly conduct (11.8 percent), simple assault (10.2 percent), malicious mischief (8.7 percent), and possessing/receiving stolen property (5.8 percent). Of the almost 18,000 cases docketed in family court in 1991, 44 percent were diverted. Counties varied both in the type and seriousness of their court cases and in how they handle cases. Probation continues to be the most frequently used disposition: over 12,500 juveniles are on probation in New Jersey on any given day. Almost 11,000 juveniles were detained in 1991. There were 10,802 juveniles admitted predispositionally to county detention facilities in 1991, which represents a 1.9 percent decrease from the 1990 total. There are many advocates for statewide availability of short-term commitment programs, but the number of programs has not increased, due mostly to costs of operation and a lack of space availability. 5 notes and 7 tables