NCJ Number
18352
Date Published
1975
Length
75 pages
Annotation
RESULTS OF A COMPUTER ANALYSIS OF THE REFERRALS AND RE-REFERRALS OF APPROXIMATELY 100,000 JUVENILE DELINQUENTS, CHILDREN IN NEED OF SUPERVISION (CINS), AND REFERRED NON-DELINQUENTS IN MARYLAND.
Abstract
THIS STUDY TRACED THE RECORDS OF INDIVIDUAL JUVENILES OVER A PERIOD OF 6 YEARS, EXAMINING MORE THAN 150,000 COURT RECORDS IN EACH OF 24 JUVENILE COURT JURISDICTIONS BY THE TYPE OF OFFENSE AND COURT DISPOSITION. EACH TABLE LISTS SEPARATELY DELINQUENCY OFFENSES, CINS, AND NON-DELINQUENCY REFERRALS. INFORMATION ON TOTAL CASES, TOTAL JUVENILES, JUVENILE RE-REFERRALS AND RE-REFERRAL CASES IS PROVIDED FOR EACH OF THE 24 OFFENSE CATEGORIES. A TABLE LISTING TOTALS FOR THE ENTIRE STATE IS PROVIDED. TABLES ARE ALSO GIVEN FOR EACH MARYLAND COUNTY. IT WAS FOUND THAT SLIGHTLY MORE THAN 75 PERCENT OF THE INDIVIDUAL JUVENILES REFERRED TO JUVENILE SERVICES BETWEEN 1968 AND 1973 WERE INVOLVED IN THE SYSTEM ONLY ONE TIME AND WERE NEVER REFERRED BACK. THE 25 PERCENT THAT WERE RE-REFERRED ACCOUNTED FOR NEARLY 50 PERCENT OF THE CASES REFERRED. THE GENERAL PATTERN SHOWED BOTH THE INDIVIDUAL AND CASE RE-REFERRAL RATES TO BE HIGHEST IN URBAN COUNTIES, AND LOWEST IN THE MORE RURAL ONES. JUVENILES INVOLVED IN AUTO THEFT, ROBBERY, BURGLARY, ASSAULT, LARCENY, JUVENILE STATUS OFFENSES, AND NARCOTICS CASES HAD THE HIGHEST RE-REFERRAL RATES.