Despite hysteria, girls' crime, murders drop in 2006 25 September 2007
Defying predictions by girl-phobic popular authors like Deborah Prothrow-Stith (Sugar and Spice) and James Garbarino (See Jane Hit) that girls would soon be picking up guns and kiilling as never before, murders by girls continued their record-low levels with a decline in 2006.
| Female and male arrests per 100,000 population ages 10-17, 2006 vs 2005 | ||||||||
| Female | Male | Change, 2006 vs 2005 | ||||||
| Offense | 2006 | 2005 | 2006 | 2005 | Female | Male | ||
| All Part I | 917.3 | 974.2 | 2,106.9 | 2,081.6 | -5.8% | +1.2% | ||
| All violent | 108.7 | 107.4 | 488.3 | 453.8 | +1.2% | +7.6% | ||
| Murder | 0.4 | 0.7 | 7.2 | 6.6 | -42.6% | +9.4% | ||
| Rape | 0.4 | 0.6 | 19.7 | 22.3 | -24.4% | -11.3% | ||
| Robbery | 20.8 | 16.8 | 188.9 | 153.8 | +24.2% | +22.8% | ||
| Assault | 87.1 | 89.4 | 272.5 | 271.2 | -2.6% | +0.5% | ||
| Property | 808.6 | 866.8 | 1,618.5 | 1,627.8 | -6.7% | -0.6% | ||
| Drug | 191.1 | 197.7 | 967.0 | 924.5 | -3.3% | +4.6% | ||
| Source: FBI Uniform Crime Reports, 2006, Tables 40, 41. | ||||||||
Of the four major violent offenses, only robbery increased among girls, as it did among boys and adults as well. The reason for 2006's across-the-board robbery increase is not clear. Meanwhile, girls' overall arrest rate for serious crimes dropped to its lowest level since 1973, with murders at their lowest level since 1963. Prediction: no commentators, experts, or news media will mention these positive trends among girls.
Mike Males, YouthFacts.org