Female Juvenile Crime

Historically, there has been a very minimal amount of research on female crime in our society. Juvenile crime is on the rise once again, especially for female offenders. In recent years, many have come to realization that the problem of female delinquency is increasing faster than the problem of male delinquency. Crime rates amongst juveniles are up again since the 1990s. There has been an increase of young women offending at higher rates then ever seen before. In 2000, the National Institute of Justice studied incarcerated female offenders and discovered a link between abuse and criminal behavior. A shocking 75 to 95 percent of female offenders are former victims of abuse various forms of abuse[1]. Any form of abuse can result in low self-esteem and poor judgment for young women.

In a 1996 U.S. Department of Justice Report, the number of arrests of young women had doubled between 1989 and 1993. Twenty percent of all juvenile arrests were committed by girls, an increase of 87 percent. [2] The bulk of crimes committed by young women are assault and illegal substance abuse. Females are more likely to also commit status offenses, which consist of running away and often lead to prostitution. According to the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, female juvenile crime is often embraced by the public, the news media, elected officials, and juvenile justice practitioners. Females should not be treated any different than males. In order to deter crime, our society has to start making examples of females who commit crimes.

1. nij.ncjrs.gov/publications/pubs_db.asp
   


2. www.justice.gov