Juvenile arrests continue to decline following reforms

BOSTON — Arrests and jail time for young offenders are continuing to drop in the wake of an overhaul to the state’s juvenile justice laws, according to a new report.

A new report by a state commission looking at the impact of recent juvenile justice reforms found that custodial arrests of suspects age 18 and under dropped by 15% between July 1, 2020, and June 30, 2021, while delinquency filings for offenses such as school disturbances and underage drinking dropped 20%.

The number of young offenders incarcerated also declined, with first-time commitments to the Department of Youth Services dropping 40% during the one-year period.

“While some of this decrease may be attributable to the COVID-19 pandemic, it is also part of a decade-plus long trend in declines in use in the juvenile justice system,” the report’s authors noted. “This is continuing evidence that the 2018 legislation is having its intended effect of limiting the number of youth coming into contact with the juvenile justice system.”

The 2018 criminal justice law raised the minimum age of criminal responsibility from 7 to 12 years old and decriminalized some minor offenses for juveniles, such as disturbing a school assembly or getting caught with alcohol.

It also gives juveniles an opportunity to keep their record clean, with a one-time “pass” on a first-offense misdemeanor charge, taking minor cases out of the criminal justice system entirely for first offenders.

Observers say that has also played a major role in the decline because police now only arrest and seek charges if a juvenile has a prior court history.

Members of the commission reviewing the 2018 law — which includes child advocates, lawmakers and other state officials — also point to national statistics showing that overall juvenile crimes have been steadily dropping for years.

In 2020, there were 3,365 arrests of individuals under 18 in the Massachusetts, according to the latest Federal Bureau of Investigation data. That’s a more than 76% decrease from 2010, when 14,623 individuals under 18 were arrested.

Rather than facing a delinquency proceeding, juveniles are increasingly referred to “diversion” programs, which allow them to avoid a finding of delinquency while engaging in activities like community service, as well as educational programs.

Most cases that enter the juvenile justice system are dismissed or diverted before they reach adjudication, the report’s authors noted.

While the 2018 reforms focused on low-level misdemeanor offenses, the report points out that violent crimes committed by youth are also declining.

Felony offenses among people 18 and younger have decreased by 40% between fiscal years 2018 and 2021, according to the report.

Despite the declining numbers of young people entering the system, the report points out that youth of color are still disproportionately affected.

Black and Latino youth, who represent 28% of the state’s population of 12- to 17-year-olds, accounted for 47% of the delinquency filings in fiscal 2019, according to the report.

Christian M. Wade covers the Massachusetts Statehouse for North of Boston Media Group’s newspapers and websites. Email him at cwade@northofboston.com.