There has been a sharp increase in killings committed by juveniles in the U.S. over recent years, according to the “Trends in Juvenile Offending” report released last month by the Council on Criminal Justice.
From 2016 to 2022, homicides committed by juveniles increased by 65%, from 315 to 521. This spike occurred even as a general decrease in most forms of juvenile crime decreased.
“Notable exceptions include more frequent use of firearms among youth,” said the report.
During the 2016 to 2022 time period, there were also multiple fatal mass shootings at schools carried out by juveniles, per a list of school shootings compiled by Security.org. It said that school shooting incidents have skyrocketed since 2015.
Fatal shooting events carried out by juveniles from 2016 to 2022 listed by Security.org included:
· The 2016 Townville Elementary School shooting carried out by then 14-year-old Jesse Dewitt Osborne
· The 2017 Freeman High School shooting carried out by then 15-year-old Caleb Sharpe
· The 2018 Santa Fe High School shooting carried out by then 17-year-old Dimitrios Pagourtzis
· The 2018 Marshall High School shooting carried out by then 15-year-old Gabe Parker
· The 2019 STEM School Highlands Ranch shooting carried out by then 16-year-old Alec McKinney (as well as then 18-year-old Devon Erickson)
· The 2019 Saugus High School shooting carried out by 16-year-old Nathaniel Tennosuke Berhow
· The 2021 Oxford High School shooting carried out by then 15-year-old Ethan Crumbley
Additionally, the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooting carried out by 19-year-old Nikolas Cruz and the Robb Elementary School shooting carried out by 18-year-old Salvador Ramos occurred during this timeframe. Both teens were considered adults at the time of the mass murders.
This year, 14-year-old Colt Gray was accused of bringing an AR-style rifle to Apalachee High School outside of Atlanta, Ga., and killing fellow students Mason Schermerhorn and Christian Angulo, both 14, as well as teachers Richard Aspinwall, 39, and Cristina Irimie, 53. He allegedly injured eight others.
“Nearly a month after the Apalachee High School shooting, school districts across the U.S. are still grappling with increased school shooting threats – and not just on social media,” said an article by Campus Safety magazine that was updated on Sept. 30. As of this May, there had already been 144 shooting incidents at K-12 schools, resulting in 107 injuries and fatalities, Security.org said.
USA Today noted that gun sales have been increasing over the past two decades to peak at more than 21 million in 2020, citing the The Trace, a nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization that tracks gun violence. It also cited a report from the Education Department that found the rate of student firearm possession in the 2021-2022 school year was higher than any other year in the previous decade.
Per the Council on Criminal Justice report, firearm involvement in juvenile offending was 21% higher in 2022 than in 2016 and use of other weapons was 6% higher. Earlier this year, Audacy reported that firearms ranked as the leading cause of death of American children and teens, for the third year in a row.
Audacy has also recently reported on juveniles killing without the use of guns. These reports include the case of a group of teen girls who allegedly beat a 64-year-old man to death in Washington, D.C., a 14-year-old girl taken into custody this May for the death of her 79-year-old grandmother and a group of around 15 teens who beat another teen boy to death in the Las Vegas area.
“Compared to other violent offenses, homicide experienced the largest percentage change during that period,” said the Council on Criminal Justice report. “However, given the relatively low number of homicides that occur compared to the number of assaults and robberies, the percentage change is more heavily influenced by smaller increases or decreases.”
According to the Council on Criminal Justice, juvenile offenders under age 18 have been “the subject of significant local and national discourse over the last several decades,” and especially in the past years. In particular, it said incidents of firearm violence related to juveniles has received mass media attention.
Juvenile offending does actually account for a notable share of crime committed in America each year, said the council report. From 2016 to 2022, around 14% of crimes involved at least one juvenile offender, based on data reviewed by the council. Official law enforcement data from the National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS) program was used to make the report.
“The COVID-19 pandemic, however, may have altered some of these patterns. Responses to the pandemic led to the closure of schools – a primary site of youth socialization and, consequently, some offending – potentially influencing juvenile offending patterns,” it added. “School closures, combined with trends such as the recent shift to digital socialization, have resulted in youth spending more time at home.”
Another interesting finding from the report shows a 23% decrease in crime among older teens aged 15 to 17 during the 2016 to 2022. However, crime among younger juveniles aged 10 to 14 increased by 9%.
Violent crimes committed by Black youth decreased by 20% during the time period that the council looked at, while crimes committed by white youth increased by less than half of a percent. Overall offenses committed by juvenile males decreased by 21% while offenses committed by female juveniles remained steady.
Kathleen Heide, professor emerita of criminology at the University of South Florida, explained that the reasons why children kill can be complicated, per USA Today. She also said that juveniles can make hasty decisions since their brains are still developing.
“When you have a juvenile who is angry, jealous, upset, terrified, they’re much more likely to react than an adult,” said Heide, also the author of “Young Killers: The Challenge of Juvenile Homicide.”
There have been efforts to reduce firearm violence in particular in the U.S., from the creation of the Office of Gun Violence Prevention by President Joe Biden to Surgeon General Vivek Murthy’s advisory on firearm violence. Limiting juvenile access to guns has been suggested as a way to prevent increased homicides, according to Everytown, an organization focused on gun safety.