Youth Indicators, 2005: Trends in the Well-Being of American Youth

Indicator 42: Arrests

Figure 42. Number of arrests per 1,000 persons in the U.S. population, ages 14 to 34 years old, by age group: Various years, 1950 to 2002

Number of arrests per 1,000 persons in the U.S. population, ages 14 to 34 years old, by age group: Various years, 1950 to 2002
1The arrest rate is an approximation for years 1950 to 1960. Data for 1950 to 1960 and for 1991 to 1999 are not precisely comparable to data for 1965 to 1990. The rate for 1965 to 1990 and 2000 to 2002 is based on the number of arrests under 18 per 1,000 persons in the population 14 to 17 years old. The 1991 to 1999 data for 14- to 17-year-olds includes arrests for 13-year-olds, but does not include arrests for children 12 years old and younger.
NOTE: Base of percentage is population in age group. Data do not indicate the proportion of persons who have been arrested, since some individuals have been arrested more than once. Some fluctuations in arrest rates are caused by changes in the response rates of law enforcement agencies. Some data are revised from previously published figures.
SOURCE: U.S. Department of Commerce, Census Bureau, Historical Statistics of the United States to 1975; Statistical Abstract of the United States, various years; and Population Estimates, various years. U.S. Department of Justice, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Uniform Crime Reports, Crime in the United States, various years.

The number of arrests per 1,000 14- to 17-year-olds increased steadily between 1950 and 1980, rising from 4 to 126. From 1994 to 2002, the number of arrests per 1,000 14- to 17-year-olds decreased, dropping from 138 in 1994 to 97 in 2002. Similarly, the number of arrests per 1,000 18- to 24- year-olds increased from 13 in 1950 to 130 in 1992. The number of arrests decreased for most of the 1990's, but then increased from 99 arrests in 1999 to 119 in 2002. Since 1960, arrest rates for 14- to 17-year-olds and 18- to 24-year-olds have been higher than the rates for 25- to 34-year-olds.


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