Criminal Justice
Juvenile Justice
The Arizona juvenile justice system is separate from the adult system in structure and function, although older juveniles charged with extremely serious crimes can be prosecuted as adults. The differences between the two systems are based chiefly on the traditional view that juveniles (in Arizona, persons younger than 18) should not be detained with adults, and that most juveniles are more amenable to reform than adults and thus warrant treatment as much as punishment.
The numbers in this section are taken from Crime in Arizona, published annually by the Arizona Department of Public Safety based on reports from Arizona law enforcement agencies. These tallies include only the eight most serious crimes (sometimes called “Part 1 crimes”) as defined by the FBI, and do not include arrests by federal or tribal officials. The data on police dispositions reflect the fact that the vast majority of arrested juveniles are referred to juvenile court or the local juvenile probation department.
