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FLORIDA - The Florida Department of Juvenile Justice reports that Florida saw a significant rise in juvenile arrests during the 2022-23 fiscal year.
According to the latest data, the state recorded 43,394 arrests involving juveniles, marking a 17% increase from the 37,048 reported in the previous year.
Despite this spike, the total remains well below the figures reported before the COVID-19 pandemic.
In 2018-19, Florida documented 54,851 juvenile arrests statewide.
That same year, Broward County reported 3,386 juvenile arrests, and Miami-Dade logged 3,075.
The recent increase was mirrored in Broward County, which experienced a rise from 1,938 arrests in 2021-22 to 2,274 in 2022-23, matching the state’s overall 17% jump.
Meanwhile, Miami-Dade saw a much smaller increase, with arrests rising just 3%, from 1,747 to 1,807.
The sharpest drop in arrests occurred during the 2020-21 fiscal year, when pandemic-related shutdowns were widespread.
That year, just 31,681 juveniles were arrested across Florida. Broward recorded 1,575, and Miami-Dade saw 1,400, both the lowest in recent years.
The rise in 2022-23 may reflect a return to normal routines, leading to more social interaction and, potentially, increased opportunities for criminal behavior.
Still, long-term trends suggest a broader decline in youth crime, which could point to the impact of prevention programs and shifting policing strategies.
For more detailed data, the Florida Department of Juvenile Justice maintains an interactive dashboard tracking delinquency trends across the state.