A recent report from the Prison Policy Initiative, Youth Confinement: The Whole Pie 2025, by Brian Nam-Sonenstein and Wendy Sawyer, found that the number of young people held in confinement in the United States has fallen by more than 70 percent over the past 25 years. 

In the late 1990s, youth incarceration reached a peak, with well over 100,000 children and teenagers locked up nationwide. By 2023, that number had decreased to about 31,900. 

Researchers in the study point to a mix of factors behind the decline, including fewer youth arrests, reforms in how courts handle juvenile cases, and the rise of diversion programs that keep young people in their communities instead of sending them to correctional facilities.

The report estimated that about 31,900 children and teenagers were held in juvenile or adult facilities in 2023. Researchers said the decline is linked to changes in policy, fewer youth arrests, and more programs that divert young people away from incarceration.

“Over the last two decades, the U.S. has made real progress in reducing youth incarceration,” said the report. “But thousands of young people are still confined, often unnecessarily, and racial inequities remain entrenched.”

Despite the overall decline, the report finds that youth of color remain disproportionately affected. Nearly half of all boys in juvenile facilities are Black, even though Black youth make up only a fraction of the nation’s total youth population. 

Black girls are also disproportionately affected, accounting for nearly 40 percent of the female population in confinement. 

Indigenous youth are also heavily overrepresented. They make up 3 percent of girls and 2 percent of boys incarcerated, even though they account for less than 1 percent of young people nationwide.

The report explained that these imbalances have persisted and in some cases worsened over time, raising concerns about unequal treatment and how reforms are being applied across different racial and ethnic groups.

The majority of incarcerated youth, about 78 percent are housed in prison-style facilities. This included about 2,400 minors locked in adult prisons or jails, and more than 22,000 held in juvenile correctional centers that resemble adult prisons.

The study also reported that about one in four youth in the system are being held before their trial, meaning they have not yet been found guilty of a crime. 

The study said many of these teens are incarcerated for low-level offenses, such as property damage, minor drug charges, or probation violations like missing a meeting or breaking curfew. These are not violent crimes, but they still lead to incarceration. 

Researchers also estimated that nearly half of all youth currently locked up about 14,200 young people could be safely released today without posing a threat to public safety. 

The report argued that holding so many minors for minor offenses or before their cases are resolved not only disrupts their education and family life but also increases the chances they will face deeper involvement in the justice system later on.

The Prison Policy Initiative recommended that states take further steps to shrink the youth prison system. 

This includes closing or downsizing large youth prisons, which often operate like adult correctional facilities; ensuring that minors are no longer housed in adult jails or prisons, where they face higher risks of abuse and isolation; and increasing the use of community-based alternatives, such as mentorship programs, restorative justice initiatives, and family-centered services that support young people without removing them from their homes.