Recent studies show America’s youth is being arrested at an alarming rate.
According to the Journals Pediatrics, about 30 percent of Americans by age 23 have been arrested at least once for something other than a traffic violation.
The study, which began in 1997 is based on responses from 7,335 youth (12-16 year olds) who participated in surveys. The surveys continued through 2008 as participants were asked a variety of questions about their activities including whether they’d been arrested by police. Researchers said they estimated the rate of those who didn’t respond to the questions, accounting for the range in the arrest rate.
By age 18, about 16 percent to 27 percent of teenagers have been arrested at least once, at age 23 that percentage moves to between 30 percent and 41 percent. The increase in arrest rates is primarily in ages 19 through 22.
Youth with arrest records have lower earnings, longer periods of unemployment and a greater risk of family conflict than those without, according to the study. The previous best estimate of arrests for non-traffic offenses was done in 1965, and showed that about 22 percent of U.S. adults had been apprehended at least once by age 23.
