New research shows that 40 percent of white males and close to half of black males are arrested before the age of 23.
Researchers looked at data from national survey data that was gathered between the years of 1997 and 2008. The data included teenagers and young adults' arrest histories that included a wide range of charges such as truancy, underage drinking, and more serious crimes, a University of South Carolina news release reported.
Having an arrest history can be harmful to one's future.
"States vary on the age that adolescents are considered adults in the eyes of the criminal law, some as young as age 16 and 17," Robert Brame, a criminology professor at the University of South Carolina and lead author of the study said in the news release.
"Criminal records that show up in searches can impede employment, reduce access to housing, thwart admission to and financing for higher education and affect civic and volunteer activities such as voting or adoption. They also can damage personal and family relationship," he said.
The data showed a "striking" racial difference in the number of male arrests, but only a small racial variation between females.
"A problem is that many males - especially black males - are navigating the transition from youth to adulthood with the baggage and difficulties from contact with the criminal justice system," Brame said
The study found that by the age of 18 about 30 percent of black males, 26 percent of Hispanic males, and 22 percent of white males had been arrested. By the age of 23 that number had risen to 49, 44, and 38 respectively.
"At age 18, arrest rates were 12 percent for white females and 11.8 percent and 11.9 percent for Hispanic and black females, respectively. By age 23, arrest rates were 20 percent for white females and 18 percent and 16 percent for Hispanic and black females, respectively," the news release reported.
Racial differences in women's' arrest records proved to be much more balanced than in males.
"As a society, we often worry a great deal about the effects of children watching television, eating junk food, playing sports and having access to good schools," Brame said. "Experiencing formal contact with the criminal justice system could also have powerful effects on behavior and impose substantial constraints on opportunities for America's youth."
"We know from our two studies that these experiences are prevalent and that they vary across different demographic groups. Going forward it will be constructive to support systematic studies into the sources of these variations and to continue efforts to understand the effects of criminal justice interventions on sanctions on future behavior," he said.
