Black Juveniles Face Indifferent Justice System

The story of the Jena 6 highlights the problems facing black youth across the nation in the criminal justice system. A system initially designed to help turn young people from a life of crime to productivity consistently has failed many young blacks. Instead it is designed to punish them rather than help them.

That is the conclusion of experts and studies done on the problems that black youth face within the criminal justice system.

The Department of Justice's Office of Justice Programs released a report, "Juvenile Offenders and Victims: 2006 National Report" which analyzed the problems that black youth in the criminal justice system face.

Among its findings were:

*In 2002, blacks were 16 percent of the juvenile population but 29 percent of the delinquency caseload;

* While white youth accounted for the largest number of delinquency cases, they were the least likely to be detained. For instance, whites made up 71 percent of those arrested but only 39 percent of those placed in custody. Blacks made up 29 percent of those arrested but made up 38 percent of those in custody.

*The 2003 black custody rate was highest for black youth, with 754 per 100,000 as opposed to rates for Asians (113), white (190), Latino (348) and Native American (496).

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