Trends in Juvenile Delinquency in the Federal Republic of Germany (From The Future of the Juvenile Justice System, P 63-67, 1991, Josine Junger-Tas and Leonieke Boendermaker, et al., eds. -- See NCJ-133019)

• NCJ Number: 133024
• Author(s): M Plate
• Date Published: 1991
• Length: 5 pages
• Sale Source: ACCO Tiensestraat 134-136
• Publication Type: Statistics
• Language: English
• Country: Belgium
• Note: *This document is currently unavailable from NCJRS. A paper from an international conference on the future of the juvenile justice system, May 29-31, 1989, in Noordwijkerhout, the Netherlands.

Annotation

This study reports on police arrest statistics for youth in the Federal Republic of Germany for 1984 through 1987 and also describes some of the juvenile diversionary programs currently in use.

Abstract

In West German arrest statistics, youth are distinguished according to age groups: children (ages 8-13), juveniles (ages 14-17), and adolescents (ages 18-20). For 1984-87 the crime increase among "adolscents" was slight (from 4,604 to 4,779), as it was also among "juveniles" (from 3,965 to 3,990). Arrests among "children" dropped marginally from 1,529 to 1,438. The type of offense most often involved was theft. Statistics indicate that in West Germany there has been a long-term increase in juvenile delinquency recorded by police. This tendency is also confirmed by court conviction figures. The age structure of suspects reported in police statistics shifted to the younger age groups between 1963 and 1978. A reversal in this trend has occurred since 1978. The descriptions of four diversionary programs indicate eligibility criteria and program procedures. Diversion includes both police and prosecutorial discretion to divert cases to parental or social worker supervision.