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African Americans Comprise Over Half of Arrested Juveniles

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Black youth make up just 16 percent of the overall youth population, but more than half of the juvenile population arrested for committing a violent crime in the United States, according to US Assistant Attorney General Karol Mason.

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WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — More than half of the juveniles arrested for violent crimes in the United States are African American, US Assistant Attorney General Karol Mason stated in remarks at a forum of the National Association of Blacks in Criminal Justice in Washington, DC on Monday.

“Black youth make up just 16 percent of the overall youth population, but more than half of the juvenile population arrested for committing a violent crime,” Mason said.

Mason said focusing on the country’s youth is vital to changing the US criminal justice system. She underscored the importance of education in keeping children away from crime.

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“Our goal should be to keep kids in school, where they can be educated and nurtured, not on the street, where trouble can find them,” Mason said.

In March 2015, the Sentencing Project State Advocacy Associate Josh Rovner told Sputnik the United States incarcerates disproportionally African American and Latino youth.

A study by the US Justice Department found that most serious juvenile offenders tend to commit less crime over time, and their original offenses do not predict whether they will be persistently involved in criminal activities, according to Juvenile Offenders and Victims 2014 National Report.

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