Juveniles under age 18 now commit some 4,000 murders a year, according to estimates by Northeastern University criminologist James Alan Fox. Juvenile arrests for violent crimes rose from around 300 per 100,000 juveniles in 1985 to just over 500 per 100,000 in 1995, reports the Justice Department.
Experts say a small percentage of chronic offenders commit most youth crimes.
Some bills would allow youths as young as 13 to be tried as adults. Governments at all levels are trying out programs ranging from conflict resolution workshops to adult mentoring and organized sports as crime prevention measures. Even when prevention works, Reynolds says, that does not imply a guiding federal role.