The 2017 Census of Juveniles in Residential Placement (CJRP), a biennial survey conducted by the U.S. Bureau of the Census on behalf of the Office of Justice Programs’ Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP), shows that the number of youth in placement continues to decline. Between 1997 and 2017, the number of juvenile offenders in residential placement facilities declined 59 percent, from 105,055 to 43,580.

The OJJDP and National Institute of Justice bulletin, Juveniles in Residential Placement, 2017, found that 96 percent of offenders were held for a delinquency offense, approximately 40 percent were held for a person offense, and 4 percent were held for a status offense. The national detention rate for black youth was six times the rate for white youth, and the commitment rate for black youth was four times the rate for white youth. Additional findings from the survey included the following:

  • Between 1997 and 2017, the number of detained and committed status offenders declined (74% and 72%, respectively)
  • Youth ages 16 and 17 accounted for more than half of offenders in placement
  • Between 1997 and 2017, male offenders in placement outnumbered female offenders; however the decrease in the number of male offenders outpaced the decline in female offenders (down 59% and 54%, respectively)
  • Black youth accounted for the largest share of youth offenders in residential placement
  • Males tended to stay in facilities longer than females