How Youth Violence Is Measured
Two approaches are typically used to measure the scope of youth violence. The first approach relies on official crime statistics compiled by law enforcement agencies. These statistics can answer questions about the number of crimes reported to the police, the volume and types of arrests, and how the volume changes over time, but they don't always answer questions about how many young people commit violent crimes or how many violent crimes are committed. A second approach surveys young people and asks them in confidence about violent acts they have committed or have been victims of during a given period of time.

What is known about youth violence in Hawai`i? Here are some official crime statistics that help you to look at trends; let's take a look at some trends in the survey results.

Trends in Official Crime Statistics

	National Overview Arrest rates of young people for homicide and other violent crimes skyrocketed from 1983 to 1993. In the mid-1990s, overall arrest rates began to decline, returning by 1999 to rates only slightly higher than those in 1983.

	Hawai'i Overview According to the State Attorney General's office, 2,113 juvenile arrests were reported statewide in 2003. During the 1975-1997 period, this figure ranged from 4,000 to 7,000 arrests annually, but has been dropping in each subsequent year. The 2003 total marks a 54.7% decrease in juvenile arrests over the course of the past decade.

Trends in Youth Survey Responses

Hawai`i Student Alcohol and Drug Use Survey
While this survey is intended to provide an indication of risk factors associated with substance abuse, it includes several questions about violence. One question asks students to indicate how often they have "attacked someone with the intent to harm in the past 12 months." The responses show that somewhere between 10-15% of students in all grade levels report having attacked with the intent to harm another person at least once in the past 12 months!