Juvenile Arrests Decrease Decline Attributed To A More Responsive Court System

Thu., Jan. 29, 1998

By Tracy Ellig tracye@spokesman.com

A Spokane County judge attributes a drop in juvenile arrests to a court system that’s working harder.

Last year, 3,447 juveniles were arrested in Spokane, a drop of 11.7 percent from 1996, the police department reported Wednesday.

The number of kids nabbed for committing some of the most common juvenile offenses - vandalism, theft and drug possession - also dropped in 1997.

But there was a small increase in arrests for violent crimes, including murder, rape and robbery.

“That seems consistent with my understanding of the trends,” said Judge Neal Q. Rielly, who presides over Juvenile Court.

Rielly said fewer juveniles are being arrested because the court system is handling cases faster today than two years ago.

“If kids realize that they will be held responsible right away for their actions it has a greater impact than if (a case) just sits there for awhile,” he said.

There was a 26 percent increase in the number of criminal cases processed and a 54 percent jump in detention hearings in 1997 compared with the previous year, Rielly said.

Arrests for vandalism dropped 10.6 percent - from 225 to 201, while arrests for non-aggravated assaults declined from 530 to 521.

Juvenile arrests for liquor law violations dipped from 245 to 210.

, DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: Graphic: Juveniles and crime

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