EMBARGOED FOR RELEASE UNTIL                                    AG
THURSDAY, MARCH 7, 1996 AT 11:00 A.M.              (202) 616-2777
                                               TDD (202) 514-1888

        NUMBER OF JUVENILE MURDERERS TRIPLED OVER 10 YEARS

     WASHINGTON, D.C. --  The number of juvenile murderers tripled
between 1984 and 1994, according to a new report released today by
the Department of Justice.  At the same time, the number of
juvenile murderers using guns quadrupled, while juveniles using
other weapons to kill stayed about the same.
     Attorney General Janet Reno announced the report's release as
people from across America gathered in Greenbelt, Maryland for the
White House Leadership Conference on Youth Drug Use and Violence.
     "These figures threaten the success we've had in bringing
overall violence down nationwide," said Reno.  "Congress must step
forward and keep its promises to help us put new police on the
streets, put hardened young people behind bars, send first-time
offenders to drug courts and boot camps, and keep kids out of
gangs.  We can only save our future if we act now."
     Juvenile Offenders and Victims: 1996 Update on Violence is a
supplement to Juvenile Offenders and Victims: A National Report
which the Justice Department released in September 1995.  The new
report includes data compiled in 1995, which, in most cases, are
for 1994.  Data are presented in an easy-to-read format on topics
ranging from juvenile homicide victims to the transfer of juveniles
to criminal court.
     "Information is one of the most important weapons in the fight
against juvenile crime," said Shay Bilchik, Administrator of the
Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP), the
Justice Department  component that issued the report.  "Without the
facts, solutions can only be derived from speculation.  Our aim is
to get critical information on emerging trends out in time to make
a difference -- both in public understanding and policy."
     The report shows that the nationwide rate at which juveniles
were arrested for violent crimes increased 50 percent from 1988 to
1994.  There were more than 150,000 juvenile arrests on 1994 for a
Violent Crime Index offense (murder, forcible rape, robbery or
aggravated assault).  Juveniles accounted for 19 percent of all
violent crime arrests in 1994.
     Other highlights from the report's analyses include:
    In 1994, 8 in 10 juvenile murderers used a firearm, up from 5
     in 10 in 1983.  Nearly half of juvenile murderers' victims
     were 15-24 years old.
    3 in 10 juveniles who killed had an adult accomplice. 
     Juveniles who killed strangers were more likely to have
     accomplices than those who killed family members or
     acquaintances.
    The proportion of juveniles who killed in groups rose from 43
     percent in 1980 to 55 percent in 1994.  Males and older teens
     were more likely than other juveniles to kill in groups.
    The number of juveniles murdered increased 82 percent between 
     1984 and 1994.  While most of the juvenile murder victims were
     teens, murders of very young children also increased.
    The number of juveniles murdered with a firearm nearly tripled
     between 1984 and 1994, while the number of juveniles killed
     with other weapons stayed the same.
    35 percent of a nationwide sample of 6th through 12th graders
     reported gangs in their school, while more than 40 percent
     reported weapons in their school.
     The report was compiled for OJJDP by Howard Snyder, Melissa
Sickmund, and Eileen Poe-Yamagata of the National Center for
Juvenile Justice.  OJJDP will continue to produce updates on key
topics as new data become available.
     Copies of Juvenile Offenders: 1996 Update on Violence are
available by writing to OJJDP's Juvenile Justice Clearinghouse, Box
6000, Rockville, Maryland 20857, or by calling toll-free, 1-800/638-8736.
     The report's authors can provide spreadsheets for reproducing
graphics from the report and answer questions about report data. 
Their telephone number in Pittsburgh is 412/227-6950.
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After hours contact:  Adam Spector at 202/616-3230