U.S. Department of Justice

Office of Justice Programs

Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention

November 2016

Access OJJDP publications online at ojjdp.gov

This bulletin is part of the 

National Report Series. 

The National Report offers 

a comprehensive statistical 

overview of the problems of 

juvenile crime, violence, and 

victimization and the response 

of the juvenile justice system. 

The bulletins in the National 

Report Series provide access 

to the latest information on 

juvenile arrests, court cases, 

juveniles in custody, and 

other topics of interest. Each 

bulletin in the series highlights 

selected topics at the forefront 

of juvenile justice policymaking,

giving readers focused access 

to statistics on some of the 

most critical issues. This 

Delinquency Cases 

Involving Hispanic 

Youth, 2013

Sarah Hockenberry and Charles Puzzanchera

A Message From OJJDP

OJJDP strives to make the most accurate information available regarding how the juvenile 

justice system handles youth entrusted to its care. Recent census data show that the youth 

population in the United States continues to become more diverse. For instance, in 1990, 

white, non-Hispanic youth made up more than two-thirds of the youth population ages 10 

through 17. By 2013, this proportion fell to 56%. During the same period, the Hispanic youth 

population increased from 12% to 23% of the total youth population. By 2025, the Hispanic 

proportion of the youth population is projected to reach 26%.

To capture the justice system implications of this demographic trend, OJJDP asked the 

National Juvenile Court Data Archive and National Juvenile Justice Data Analysis Program to 

prepare this bulletin on juvenile court handling of delinquency cases involving Hispanic 

youth. In addition, OJJDP has added a new special topics section on Hispanic youth in the 

juvenile justice system (www.ojjdp.gov/ojstatbb/special_topics/faqs.asp) to the Statistical 

Briefing Book. OJJDP will continue to support special analysis of national justice data collections to broaden what is understood about the characteristics and experiences of Hispanic 

youth who come into contact with the juvenile justice system.

Although not national estimates, the data presented in this bulletin detail where racial disparities exist at each of the decision points within the juvenile justice system. OJJDP hopes that 

the information this bulletin provides will inform and guide reform efforts to significantly 

reduce these disparities, ensure that system-involved youth receive more developmentally 

appropriate services, and secure better long-term prospects for these youth, their families, 

and their communities.

Robert L. Listenbee

Administrator

series provides a baseline 

of facts for juvenile justice 

professionals, policymakers, 

the media, and concerned 

citizens.
2 National Report Series Bulletin

The Archive collects 

delinquency and status 

offense case data 

The National Juvenile Court Data Archive 

(Archive) is funded by the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, 

within the U.S. Department of Justice. It 

houses the automated records of cases 

handled by courts with juvenile jurisdiction. Although courts with juvenile jurisdiction may handle a variety of matters, 

including child maltreatment, traffic violations, child support, and adoption, the 

Archive focuses on collecting and analyzing cases involving juveniles charged with 

law violations (delinquency and status 

offenses). The Archive provides the most 

detailed information available on the 

activities of the nation’s juvenile courts. 

The annual Juvenile Court Statistics

report series is one of many products 

supported by the Archive. The 2013 

report described delinquency cases 

handled between 1985 and 2013 and 

petitioned status offense cases handled 

between 1995 and 2013. Data used in 

The National Juvenile Court Data Archive describes 

delinquency cases involving Hispanic youth

How was the sample selected?

the analyses were contributed to the 

Archive by more than 2,400 courts with 

jurisdiction over 84% of the juvenile population in 2013. National estimates are 

based on a large nonprobability sample. 

In addition to generating national estimates, the Archive supports detailed 

analyses of subnational (sample) data. 

Case-level data files account for more 

than 90% of the Archive’s data submissions in any given year. The project 

restructures each jurisdiction-specific 

case-level file into a standardized format. 

These standardized files can be merged 

into a multijurisdiction database to support various research needs. This bulletin 

is based on a multijurisdiction (subnational) database of more than 5 million 

delinquency case records processed by 

juvenile courts between 2006 and 2013.

Improved reporting of 

Hispanic ethnicity 

supports new analysis

In 2003, modifications to federal standards for race and ethnicity classification 

Data in this bulletin are based on sample 

data originally collected by OJJDP’s 

National Juvenile Court Data Archive 

project, which relies on the voluntary 

participation of state and local juvenile 

courts in the U.S. Case-level data files 

involving delinquency offenses submitted to the Archive were analyzed to 

assess the quality of their race/ethnicity 

data. Counties with less than 10% missing race/ethnicity in their case-level data 

were included in the sample. This condition had to be met for all years during 

the 2006–2013 reporting period. Counties that did not have consistently good 

race/ethnicity data (i.e., more than 10% 

missing) for all years were excluded. 

Thus, the analysis does not include all 

counties in all states. The resulting sample includes data from more than 1,200 

counties from 26 states and the District of 

Columbia (see the data sources section 

on page 12 for the list of states). The 

sample represents 75% of the U.S. Hispanic youth population at risk of juvenile 

court involvement and 58% of all youth 

(any race) at risk. Throughout this bulletin, Hispanic ethnicity is handled as 

though it were a race category. Thus, 

Hispanic youth are represented only as 

Hispanic in this sample. For brevity, the 

term Hispanic is used throughout this 

bulletin to refer to Hispanic or Latino 

youth.

in federal data were to take effect. The 

Archive has collected data from state and 

local data systems, but those systems 

were often slow to adopt the federal standard, so the Archive has not yet been able 

to incorporate detail on youth’s ethnicity 

into its national estimates. However, the 

number of jurisdictions that report ethnicity data consistently over time is now sufficient to allow the current sample-based 

analyses. 

How many arrests involve 

Hispanic youth?

Little is known about the volume and 

nature of arrests involving Hispanic 

youth within the U.S. Current national 

arrest estimates are detailed by race 

only; as a result, documenting how 

many Hispanic youth are arrested 

requires use of subnational data. The 

FBI’s National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS) collects race and 

ethnicity data as reported by participating law enforcement departments. 

In 2013, 38,400 juvenile arrests 

involving Hispanic youth were reported to NIBRS by more than 5,300 

police departments. Hispanic youth 

accounted for 15% of more than 

252,000 juvenile arrests reported to 

NIBRS by these departments. Of the 

Hispanic juvenile arrests, about onefourth (27%) involved females and 

54% involved youth ages 16 or 17. 

Property Crime Index offenses 

accounted for 20% of Hispanic juvenile arrests, but only 4% involved 

Violent Crime Index offenses.

Source: Author’s analysis of National Archive of 

Criminal Justice Data (2015). National IncidentBased Reporting System, 2013: Arrestee 

Extract File. Study Number: ICPSR 36121. 

Distributed by the Inter-university Consortium 

for Political and Social Research.
November 2016 3

Less than 10% (21)

10% to 16% (16) 

17% to 23% (7) 

More than 23% (7) 

DC

Proportion of Hispanic

youth ages 10–17, 2013

Hispanic youth represented more than 23% of youth ages 10–17 in 7 states 

in 2013

n In 2013, Hispanic youth accounted for more than half of the youth population ages 10–17 in 

New Mexico (58%) and California (51%). Other states with large proportions of Hispanics in 

the juvenile population include Texas (48%) and Arizona (43%).

Juvenile court data discussed in this bulletin are based on a sample of juvenile 

courts that contributed data to the 

Archive. The sample includes data from 

more than 1,200 counties and represents 

75% of the U.S. Hispanic youth population at risk of juvenile court involvement. 

The resulting analyses of 123,234 samplebased delinquency cases involving Hispanic youth in 2013 are not national 

estimates.

The Hispanic youth 

population has grown 

considerably since 1990

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, 

Hispanic is defined as a person of Cuban, 

Mexican, Puerto Rican, South or Central 

American, or other Spanish culture or 

origin regardless of race. Hispanic youth 

accounted for 23% of the juvenile population ages 10 to 17 in 2013. Between 1990 

and 2013, the Hispanic youth population 

increased 134%, from 3.2 million in 1990 

to 7.5 million in 2013. As a result, the 

Hispanic proportion of the youth population grew 11 percentage points between 

1990 and 2013.

Population 

characteristics

Hispanic population 

ages 10–17, 2013

Number Percentage

Total 7,506,019 100%

Age

10 to 12 2,879,461 38

13 to 14 1,887,345 25

15 916,571 12

16 911,265 12

17 911,377 12

Gender

Male 3,826,495 51

Female 3,679,524 49

Race

White 6,674,005 89

Black 430,048 6

Amer. Indian 262,582 3

Asian 139,384 2

Note: Detail may not add to totals because of 

rounding.

Law enforcement agencies are the primary source of delinquency 

referrals to juvenile court

Hispanic delinquency case source of referral profile, 2013

Source of referral Delinquency Person Property Drugs Public order

Law enforcement 85% 94% 95% 88% 66%

School 3 2 2 8 3

Other 12 4 3 3 32

Total 100% 100% 100% 100% 100%

n The relatively small proportion of public order cases involving Hispanic youth referred 

by law enforcement may be attributed to the fact that this offense group includes 

probation violations and contempt-of-court cases, which tend to be referred by court 

personnel.

Note: Detail may not add to totals because of rounding. 

Challenges exist in collecting race and ethnicity data

Based on information provided by juvenile justice professionals who contribute data 

to the Archive, race data typically reflect information that was collected by intake/

court officials to determine the race of a youth, often by appearance alone. Rarely is 

the youth’s race/ethnicity self-reported. Additionally, there is no common practice for 

how ethnicity data are collected. Some jurisdictions collect ethnicity separately from 

race; others treat Hispanic ethnicity as if it were a race. This inconsistency poses 

challenges when conducting analyses and highlights the need for more uniform data 

collection procedures. 
4 National Report Series Bulletin

Females accounted for one-quarter of 

for half of the caseload

Most serious offense

the Hispanic delinquency caseload; youth younger than 16 accounted 

2013 Hispanic caseload Percent change

Number

of cases

Offense 

profile Female

Younger 2006– 2009– 2012–

than 16 2013 2013 2013

Total 123,234 100% 24% 50% –34% –33% –11%

Person 26,485 21 29 56 –33 –30 –11

Criminal homicide 120 0 11 31 –35 –35 –13

Forcible rape and other violent sex offenses 1,437 1 3 56 –15 –37 –18

Robbery 2,134 2 11 38 –30 –2 –3

Aggravated assault 3,280 3 20 51 –45 –38 –11

Simple assault 18,298 15 35 59 –32 –38 –16

Property 39,195 32 24 51 –40 –29 –11

Burglary 8,775 7 13 49 –32 –1 –9

Larceny–theft 16,494 13 39 52 –25 –27 –8

Vandalism 7,338 6 10 54 –56 –42 –16

Drug law violation 19,756 16 18 49 –9 –37 –14

Public order 37,798 31 22 45 –37 –34 –13

Obstruction of justice 20,846 17 21 38 –31 –39 –15

Disorderly conduct 5,457 4 36 63 –49 –37 –5

Weapons 3,565 3 8 51 –55 –27 3

n Property offenses accounted for the largest proportion of Hispanic cases in 2013; cases involving person offenses constituted a smaller 

proportion of the caseload (32% and 21%, respectively).

n Larceny–theft offenses accounted for the largest proportion of cases involving Hispanic females, followed by disorderly conduct a nd 

simple assault offenses (39%, 36%, and 35%, respectively).

n Youth age 15 or younger accounted for more than 60% of disorderly conduct cases involving Hispanic youth.

n Most cases declined by 25% or more between 2006 and 2013; vandalism and weapons offense cases had the largest relative declines

(down 56% and 55%, respectively). 

Property and public order offenses accounted for 

63% of Hispanic delinquency cases in 2013

Note: Totals include offenses not shown. Detail may not add to totals because of rounding.

Number of cases

200,000

175,000

150,000

125,000

100,000

75,000

50,000

25,000

0

Delinquency

2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013

Overall, the number of delinquency cases involving Hispanic youth declined 34% between 2006 and 2013

Number of cases

80,000

70,000

60,000

50,000

40,000

30,000

20,000

10,000

0

Public order

Person

Drugs

Property

2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013

n Of the four major offense categories, property and public order offenses accounted for the largest relative declines between 2006 and 2013 

(down 40% and 37%, respectively).
November 2016 5

Offense profiles for white youth and Hispanic youth 

were similar in 2013

Offense profiles were 

similar for males and 

females

Person offense cases accounted for a 

larger proportion of the Hispanic female 

caseload than of the male caseload, while 

drug offenses accounted for a smaller 

proportion.

Most serious

offense

Hispanic caseload

offense profile, 2013

Male Female

Delinquency 100% 100%

Person 25 30

Property 34 35

Drugs 15 9

Public order 26 26

Property offenses 

accounted for the 

largest proportion of 

cases involving youth 

age 15 and younger

Compared with older Hispanic youth (16 

and older), cases involving younger youth 

involved a greater proportion of person 

offenses and a smaller proportion of public order offenses. 

Most serious

offense

Hispanic caseload

offense profile, 2013

Age 15

and younger

Age 16

and older

Delinquency 100% 100%

Person 24 19

Property 33 31

Drugs 16 16

Public order 27 34

Compared with other race groups, the Hispanic caseload had a 

greater proportion of public order cases

Profiles, 2013

Amer.

Characteristic Hispanic White Black Indian Asian

Number of cases 123,234 176,659 163,372 7,161 6,364

Most serious offense 100% 100% 100% 100% 100%

Person 21 24 31 23 21

Property 32 35 35 37 43

Drugs 16 17 8 16 13

Public order 31 24 26 23 23

Gender 100% 100% 100% 100% 100%

Male 76 72 74 68 72

Female 24 28 26 32 28

Age 100% 100% 100% 100% 100%

15 and younger 50 50 54 56 44

16 and older 50 50 46 44 56

n Property offenses accounted for the largest proportion of delinquency cases for all 

race groups.

n In contrast with caseloads for white youth and black youth, public order offense 

cases accounted for a larger share of the Hispanic delinquency caseload than person 

offenses.

n In 2013, more than three-quarters (76%) of the Hispanic caseload involved males, 

compared with 74% for black youth, 72% each for white youth and Asian youth, and 

68% for American Indian youth.

n The Hispanic and white caseloads had smaller proportions of youth ages 15 and 

younger (50% each) compared with the black caseload (54%).

Notes: Percentages are based on valid data only and do not include missing values. Detail may not add to 

totals because of rounding. Racial categories (white, black, American Indian, and Asian) do not include 

youth of Hispanic ethnicity. The American Indian racial categor y includes Alaska Natives; the Asian racial 

category includes Other Pacific Islanders.

Number of delinquency cases

350,000

300,000

250,000

200,000

150,000

100,000

50,000

0

Black

Hispanic

White

2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013

Between 2006 and 2013, the decrease in the number of delinquency cases 

involving Hispanic youth (34%) was less than the decrease in cases 

involving black youth (37%) and white youth (46%)
6 National Report Series Bulletin

More than half of the cases involving Hispanic youth 

were petitioned to court for formal processing

In a formally processed 

case, petitioners ask the 

court to order sanctions

Formal case handling involves the filing of 

a petition requesting that the court hold 

an adjudicatory or waiver hearing. Decisionmakers (police, probation, intake, 

prosecutor, or other screening officer) 

may consider informal case handling if 

they believe that accountability and rehabilitation can be achieved without formal 

court intervention. Compared with informally handled (nonpetitioned) cases, formally processed (petitioned) delinquency 

cases tend to involve more serious 

offenses, older juveniles, and juveniles 

with longer court histories.

If the court decides to handle the matter 

informally, the youth agrees to comply 

with one or more sanctions such as community service, victim restitution, or voluntary probation supervision. Informal 

cases are generally held open pending 

successful completion of the disposition. 

If the court’s conditions are met, the 

charges are dismissed. If, however, the 

youth does not fulfill the conditions, the 

case is likely to be petitioned for formal 

processing

What is an adjudication?

At the adjudicatory hearing, a juvenile may 

be adjudicated (judged) a delinquent or 

status offender; the case would then proceed to a disposition hearing. Alternatively, a case can be dismissed or continued 

in contemplation of dismissal. In these 

cases, the court often recommends that 

the juvenile take some actions prior to the 

final adjudication decisions, such as paying restitution or voluntarily attending 

drug counseling.

More than 60% of petitioned delinquency cases involving Hispanic 

youth resulted in a delinquency adjudication

Percentage of Percentage of

Hispanic Hispanic 

delinquency petitioned cases 

Characteristic cases petitioned adjudicated

Most serious offense

Total delinquency 53% 62%

Person 57 59

Criminal homicide 77 55

Forcible rape and other violent sex offenses 66 63

Robbery 82 72

Aggravated assault 74 67

Simple assault 50 54

Property 51 61

Burglary 76 64

Larceny–theft 36 56

Vandalism 52 63

Drug law violation 44 58

Public order 57 67

Obstruction of justice 74 72

Disorderly conduct 26 46

Weapons 63 58

Gender

Male 56 63

Female 42 56

Age

15 or younger 49 60

16 or older 57 64

n More than half (53%) of all delinquency cases involving Hispanic youth were peti -

tioned to court for formal case processing in 2013. Of petitioned delinquency cases

involving Hispanic youth, 62% resulted in the youth being adjudicated delinquent.

n Cases involving robbery, criminal homicide, and burglar y offenses were most likely to 

be petitioned to court for formal handling.

n Once petitioned, cases involving robber y and obstruction of justice offenses were

most likely to result in a delinquency adjudication.

n Males were more likely than females to be petitioned and adjudicated.

n Older youth (age 16 or older) were more likely than younger youth (age 15 or young -

er) to be petitioned and adjudicated.

Note: Totals include offenses not shown.
November 2016 7

Hispanic youth were more likely to be placed on 

probation than to be ordered to placement

At the disposition 

hearing, the most 

appropriate sanction for 

the case is determined

Most juvenile dispositions are multifaceted

and involve some sort of supervised probation. A probation order often includes 

requirements such as drug counseling, 

weekend confinement in the local detention center, or restitution to the community or victim. The term of probation may be 

for a specified period of time or it may be 

open-ended. After conditions of probation 

have been successfully met, the judge terminates the case. In 2013, formal probation was the most severe disposition 

ordered in 66% of the cases in which a 

Hispanic youth was adjudicated delinquent.

In 2013, juvenile courts ordered residential placement in 30% of the cases in 

which a Hispanic youth was adjudicated 

delinquent. Residential commitment may 

be for a specific or indeterminate time 

period. The facility may be publicly or privately operated and may have a secure, 

prisonlike environment or a more open 

setting. In many states, when the judge 

commits a juvenile to the state department of juvenile corrections, the department determines where the juvenile will 

be placed and when the juvenile will be 

released. In other states, the judge controls the type and length of stay.

Once adjudicated, less than one-third of Hispanic youth were ordered 

to placement in 2013

Percentage of adjudicated cases

Ordered to

residential Ordered to

Characteristic placement probation

Most serious offense

Total delinquency 30% 66%

Person 32 66

Criminal homicide 76 24

Forcible rape and other violent sex offenses 29 70

Robbery 53 47

Aggravated assault 33 65

Simple assault 26 71

Property 27 69

Burglary 30 69

Larceny–theft 21 73

Vandalism 28 68

Drug law violation 19 76

Public order 35 61

Obstruction of justice 36 60

Disorderly conduct 18 72

Weapons 40 58

Gender

Male 31 65

Female 24 72

Age

15 or younger 22 75

16 or older 36 60

n Once adjudicated, 3 in 10 cases involving Hispanic youth resulted in residential place -

ment; nearly 7 in 10 resulted in probation.

n In general, cases adjudicated delinquent involving more serious offenses or violent 

crimes were more likely to result in out-of-home placement. For example, the majority 

(76%) of criminal homicide cases and more than half (53%) of robber y cases adjudicated delinquent resulted in out-of-home placement.

n In contrast, probation was most likely to be ordered for cases involving youth who 

committed drug law violations (76%), larceny–theft (73%), or disorderly conduct 

offenses (72%).

n Males were more likely than females to be ordered to placement in 2013; females 

were more likely than males to be placed on probation. 

n Youth age 15 or younger were less likely than older youth to be ordered to residential 

placement but were more likely to be placed on probation.

Note: Totals include offenses not shown.
8 National Report Series Bulletin

How were Hispanic delinquency cases processed in 

juvenile courts in 2013?

n In 2013, 53% of juvenile court cases 

involving Hispanic youth were handled 

formally (with the filing of a petition).

n Less than 1% of all formally processed 

delinquency cases involving Hispanic 

youth were judicially waived to criminal 

court.

n In 2013, 62% of the cases that were 

handled formally (with the filing of a 

petition) resulted in a delinquency 

adjudication.

n More than half of petitioned cases in 

which the youth was not adjudicated 

delinquent were dismissed in 2013, and 

another 36% resulted in some form of 

probation.

n In 2013, the court dismissed 48% of the 

informally handled (nonpetitioned) delinquency cases involving Hispanic youth, 

while 27% of nonpetitioned cases resulted in voluntary probation and 25% in 

other sanctions.

n For every 1,000 delinquency cases 

involving Hispanic youth in 2013, 530 

were petitioned for formal processing. 

Of these petitioned cases, 329 were 

adjudicated delinquent.

123,234 Hispanic Waived

delinquency cases 312 <1%

Placed

12,141 30%

Adjudicated Probation

40,506 62% 26,802 66%

Other sanction

1,563 4%

Petitioned

65,354 53%

Probation

8,882 36%

Not adjudicated Other sanction

24,536 38% 2,507 10%

Dismissed

13,147 54%

Probation

15,546 27%

Not petitioned Other sanction

57,880 47% 14,689 25%

Dismissed

27,645 48%

A typical 1,000 Hispanic 3 Waived

delinquency cases

99 Placed

329 Adjudicated 217 Probation

530 Petitioned 13 Other sanction

72 Probation

199 Not adjudicated 20 Other sanction

107 Dismissed

126 Probation

470 Nonpetitioned 119 Other sanction

224 Dismissed

Notes: Cases are categorized by their most severe or restrictive sanction. Detail may not add to totals because of rounding.

In 66% of cases adjudicated delinquent, formal probation was the most severe sanction ordered by the court, and 

30% of cases adjudicated delinquent resulted in residential placement
November 2016 9

94,194 Hispanic male

delinquency cases

Waived

293 1%

Placed

10,512 31%

Adjudicated Probation

33,687 63% 21,925 65%

Other sanction

1,250 4%

Petitioned

53,169 56%

Probation

6,806 35%

Not adjudicated Other sanction

19,189 36% 1,995 10%

Dismissed

10,388 54%

Probation

10,660 26%

Not petitioned Other sanction

41,025 44% 9,775 24%

Dismissed

20,590 50%

29,021 Hispanic female Waived

delinquency cases 19 <1%

Placed

1,628 24%

Adjudicated Probation

6,815 56% 4,874 72%

Other sanction

313 5%

Petitioned

12,180 42%

Probation

2,076 39%

Not adjudicated Other sanction

5,346 44% 511 10%

Dismissed

2,759 52%

Probation

4,885 29%

Not petitioned Other sanction

16,841 58% 4,908 29%

Dismissed

7,048 42%

n In 2013, more than half (56%) of all 

delinquency cases involving Hispanic 

males were petitioned to court for formal 

handling, compared with 42% of those 

involving females.

n Once petitioned, cases involving 

Hispanic males were more likely to result 

in a delinquency adjudication (63%) than 

were cases involving females (56%).

n For both males and females, a small proportion of delinquency cases were judicially waived to criminal court.

n Once adjudicated delinquent, males were 

more likely to receive a disposition of 

out-of-home placement (31%) than were 

females (24%).

n Nearly 6 in 10 cases involving Hispanic 

females were handled informally (not 

petitioned to court); the same was true 

for less than half (44%) of cases involving Hispanic males.

n Among nonpetitioned cases, males were 

more likely than females to have their 

case dismissed and less likely to be 

placed on probation.

Delinquency cases involving Hispanic females were more likely to receive a disposition of probation following 

adjudication (72%) than were cases involving Hispanic males (65%)

Notes: Cases are categorized by their most severe or restrictive sanction. Detail may not add to totals because of rounding.
10 National Report Series Bulletin

Racial disparities occur at various decision points 

within the juvenile justice system

The RRI measures 

disparity at each 

decision point

OJJDP developed the Relative Rate Index 

(RRI) as a tool to identify and measure 

disparities across the stages of the juvenile justice system by comparing rates of 

juvenile justice contact experienced by different groups of youth. The RRI takes the 

relative size of different populations at 

each stage of the process and compares 

it to the immediately preceding stage for 

each group. The key idea behind the RRI 

is to quantify the nature of the decisions 

at each decision point (i.e., rate) for each 

group and then compare these rates 

for each group to identify the unique 

Hispanic youth were more likely than white youth, but much 

juvenile court 

Decision points Hispanic White

less likely than black youth, to be referred to 

Relative Rate Index 

compared with:

Black Amer. Indian Asian White Black

Number

Population (age 10 to upper age) 5,235,401 8,691,029 2,390,901 216,593 1,127,615

Cases referred to juvenile court 123,234 176,659 163,372 7,161 6,364

Cases diverted 30,235 53,635 32,752 1,981 1,672

Cases petitioned 65,354 90,636 98,456 3,540 3,470

Cases adjudicated 40,506 48,508 47,149 2,285 1,981

Adjudicated cases resulting in probation 26,802 31,504 27,986 1,504 1,370

Adjudicated cases resulting in placement 12,141 11,486 14,744 586 471

Cases judicially waived 312 596 803 33 10

Rate

Cases referred per 1,000 population 23.5 20.3 68.3 33.1 5.6 1.2 0.3

Cases diverted per 100 referrals 24.5 30.4 20.0 27.7 26.3 0.8 1.2

Cases petitioned per 100 referrals 53.0 51.3 60.3 49.4 54.5 1.0 0.9

Cases adjudicated per 100 petitioned 62.0 53.5 47.9 64.5 57.1 1.2 1.3

Probation cases per 100 adjudicated 66.2 64.9 59.4 65.8 69.2 1.0 1.1

Placement cases per 100 adjudicated 30.0 23.7 31.3 25.6 23.8 1.3 1.0

Cases judicially waived per 100 petitioned 0.5 0.7 0.8 – – 0.7 0.6

n Compared with white youth, Hispanic youth were 20% more likely to be referred to juvenile court and equally as likely to have t heir case

handled formally. Once adjudicated, Hispanic youth were as likely as white youth to be placed on probation but 30% more likely to be 

ordered to out-of-home placement.

n Hispanic youth were 30% more likely than black youth to be adjudicated delinquent in 2013. Hispanic youth were more likely tha n black

contributions to disparity made by each 

decision point.

For example, once referred to court intake, 

a decision is made to determine whether 

the matter will be handled formally, with 

the filing of a petition requesting an adjudicatory or waiver hearing, or informally. 

To determine the RRI for Hispanic youth 

compared with white youth or black 

youth, the RRI compares the proportions 

(or rates) of court referrals that are handled formally for each racial group being 

compared. If the rate of formally handled 

cases relative to court referrals for Hispanic youth is greater than the rate for 

another race, then there is disparity. If 

the rates are similar, then there is no 

disparity. To simplify the comparison of 

these statistics, the RRI is the rate for 

Hispanic youth divided by the rate for the 

other race at each decision point. If the 

RRI ratio is near or equal to 1.0, there is 

no evidence of disparity; if the ratio is 

greater than 1.0 (if the rate for Hispanic 

youth is larger than the rate for the other 

race), there is evidence of disparity. Each 

decision point has a preceding stage with 

which it is compared. Together this set of 

decision points and their relative rate 

indexes form the Relative Rate Index 

Matrix, a table that can reveal the nature 

of decision disparities—including their 

magnitude and differences—in a juvenile 

justice system that is interdependent, 

though fragmented.

youth to be placed on probation, but were as likely to be ordered to out-of-home placement. Hispanic youth were less likely tha n black

youth to be waived to criminal court for case processing.

– Too few cases to calculate a reliable rate.
November 2016 11

In 2013, across offense categories, Hispanic youth were more likely than white youth or black youth to be 

adjudicated delinquent

Referrals to population

Diverted to referrals

Petitioned to referrals

Adjudicated to petitioned

Probation to adjudicated

Placements to adjudicated

Waived to petitioned

0.3

0.6

0.7

0.8

0.9

1.0

1.0

1.0

1.1

1.2

1.2

1.2

1.3

1.3

0.0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0 1.2 1.4

Hispanic Relative Rate Index

White Black

Referrals to population

Diverted to referrals

Petitioned to referrals

Adjudicated to petitioned

Probation to adjudicated

Placements to adjudicated

Waived to petitioned

0.2

0.8

1.0

1.2

1.1

0.9

1.2

1.2

1.0

1.1

1.2

1.0

1.3

0.8

0.0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0 1.2 1.4

Hispanic Relative Rate Index

Referrals to population

Diverted to referrals

Petitioned to referrals

Adjudicated to petitioned

Probation to adjudicated

Placements to adjudicated

Waived to petitioned

1.0

1.2

0.3

0.8

1.1

0.9

1.1

1.3

1.0

1.1

1.1

0.9

0.4

0.5

0.0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0 1.2 1.4

Hispanic Relative Rate Index

Referrals to population

Diverted to referrals

Petitioned to referrals

Adjudicated to petitioned

Probation to adjudicated

Placements to adjudicated

Waived to petitioned

0.7

1.1

1.0

1.5

0.9

0.8

1.2

1.4

1.3

1.0

1.1

0.8

0.5

0.4

0.0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0 1.2 1.4 1.6

Hispanic Relative Rate Index

Referrals to population

Diverted to referrals

Petitioned to referrals

Adjudicated to petitioned

Probation to adjudicated

Placements to adjudicated

Waived to petitioned

0.4

1.5

0.8

1.0

0.9

0.9

1.2

1.4

1.1

1.1

1.3

1.1

0.6

0.6

0.0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0 1.2 1.4 1.6

Hispanic Relative Rate Index

Total delinquency

Person Property

Drugs Public order

n With the exception of person offenses, Hispanic youth were less likely to be judicially waived to criminal court than white youth.

n Across offenses, cases involving Hispanic youth were consistently less likely to be referred to juvenile court, handled formally, and waived to 

criminal court than cases involving black youth.
National Report Series Bulletin NCJ 249915

U.S. Department of Justice

Office of Justice Programs

Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention

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Laurel, MD 20707-4651

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Data sources

National Center for Health Statistics (prepared 

under a collaborative arrangement with the 

U.S. Census Bureau), Vintage 2014 Postcensal 

Estimates of the Resident Population of the 

United States (April 1, 2010, July 1, 2010–July 

1, 2014), by Year, County, Single-Year of Age 

(0, 1, 2, . . . , 85 Years and Over), Bridged 

Race, Hispanic Origin, and Sex [machinereadable data files available online at cdc.gov/

nchs/nvss/bridged_race.htm, released 7/8/15].

National Center for Juvenile Justice. 2015. 

National Juvenile Court Data Archive: Juvenile 

Court Case Records 2006–2013 [machinereadable data files]. Pittsburgh, PA: National 

Center for Juvenile Justice (producer). [Data 

were included from Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, 

Arkansas, California, Connecticut, District of 

Columbia, Florida, Hawaii, Iowa, Maryland, 

Michigan, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, New 

Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, 

Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, 

Texas, Utah, Washington, and Wisconsin.]

Visit OJJDP’s Statistical Briefing 

Book for more juvenile court 

information

OJJDP’s online Statistical Briefing Book 

(SBB) offers access to information about 

juvenile crime and victimization and about 

youth involved in the juvenile justice system. A Special Topics section of the SBB 

contains Frequently Asked Questions that 

provide the latest answers to commonly 

asked questions about Hispanic youth in 

the juvenile justice system, including population characteristics, arrests, and delinquency cases. The National Juvenile Court 

Data Archive website (ojjdp.gov/ojstatbb/

njcda) describes the data sets housed in 

the Archive and provides information on 

accessing the data, publications based on 

the Archive data, and interactive data 

analysis tools that allow users to explore 

national estimates based on more than 40 

million delinquency cases processed by 

the nation’s juvenile courts since 1985. 

Acknowledgments

This bulletin was written by Sarah

Hockenberry, Research Associate, and

Charles Puzzanchera, Senior Research

Associate, at the National Center for

Juvenile Justice, with funds provided by

OJJDP to support the National Juvenile

Court Data Archive and the National

Juvenile Justice Data Analysis Program.

This bulletin was prepared under grant 

numbers 2012–JR–FX–0002, 2013–MU–FX–0005, 

and 2015–JR–FX–0061 from the Office of 

Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention 

(OJJDP), U.S. Department of Justice.

Points of view or opinions expressed in this 

document are those of the authors and do not 

necessarily represent the official position or 

policies of OJJDP or the U.S. Department of 

Justice.

The Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency

Prevention is a component of the Office of

Justice Programs, which also includes the 

Bureau of Justice Assistance; the Bureau of 

Justice Statistics; the National Institute of 

Justice; the Office for Victims of Crime; and 

the Office of Sex Offender Sentencing, 

Monitoring, Apprehending, Registering, and 

Tracking.