Juvenile Court Processing of Youth-Produced Sexual Image Cases

• In Event: Sexual Offenses By and Against Youth: What We Know From Official Data

Abstract

The existing research on sexting - the sharing of sexually explicit images, videos, or messages through electronic means - tends to focus on youth characteristics and prevalence rates. Much less is known about how the juvenile justice system responds to youth involved with sexting. Using data submitted to OJJDP’s National Juvenile Court Data Archive, this presentation aims to bridge this gap by focusing on the characteristics of youth referred to juvenile court for sexting and the case processing outcomes associated with their offense, including predisposition detention, adjudication, and disposition.

Authors

• Kristan Russell, University of Nebraska at Omaha, Juvenile Justice Institute

• Marly Zeigler, National Center for Juvenile Justice