Percentage of female juveniles arrested in Cape Girardeau remains steady despite national trends

Though young females are the fastest growing offenders in the national juvenile justice population, according to the National Council on Crime and Delinquency, local numbers do not show a dramatic increase in the amount of girls arrested as juveniles.

Through Tuesday, 34 percent of juveniles arrested in Cape Girardeau ages 18 or younger this year were female. Just 27 percent of those arrested under the age of 15 were female.

In 2006, females also constituted 34 percent of the number of juveniles 18 or younger arrested in Cape Girardeau, according to the Missouri State Highway Patrol.

Last year, 87 female juveniles under the age of 15 were arrested in Cape Girardeau, of a total 243 arrests for juveniles in that age group.

"It's more than it used to be, but it's not the national average," said Randy Rhodes, chief juvenile officer for Cape Girardeau.

Rhodes said that typically, female offenders tend to commit offenses related to family problems, such as being reported as a runaway when they are simply living with an estranged parent that does not have custody.

Look for more on this story later at semissourian.com or in Thursday's Southeast Missourian.