2026 OCAP State of the Child Report

GANG ACTIVITY AMONG YOUTH JUVENILE GANG-RELATED PROSECUTIONS INCREASED BETWEEN 2021 AND 2024, HIGHLIGHTING ONGOING PREVENTION NEEDS AND DISPROPOPORTIONATE IMPACTS ON HISPANIC AND BLACK/ This indicator reports the number of unique juveniles ages 10 to 17 with gang-related prosecutions in Riverside County, along with the rate per 100,000 youth by age. Juvenile population estimates used to calculate the age-specific rates are drawn from the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) Easy Access to Juvenile Populations (EZAPOP) tool, which currently provides data through 2023. AFRICAN AMERICAN YOUTH DESCRIPTION OF INDICATOR

Why is this indicator important?

Findings 1 • Juvenile gang-related prosecutions increased steadily from 2021 through 2024 before declining in 2025. Continued tracking required to assess improvement in trend. • Youth aged 15 to 17 experienced the highest number of gang-related prosecutions in 2023, with involvement sharply increasing as youth approach late adolescence. • Gang-related prosecutions among youth ages 12 and 13 remain relatively low, but their presence reinforces the need for prevention efforts before high school. • Hispanic and Black/African American youth continue to be disproportionately represented in gang-related prosecutions, reflecting persistent racial and ethnic discrepancies. • Rising rates per 100,000 youth, despite relatively stable juvenile population counts, indicate that the upward trend is driven by increased gang activity rather than an increase in the juvenile population.

Youth who become involved in street gangs tend to account for an outsized share of serious offending. Compared with other justice-involved adolescents, gang-involved youth are more likely to participate in violence and other high-harm crimes, often alongside access to firearms and involvement in drug sales. In California and across Riverside County, multiagency enforcement actions emphasize the same reality: criminal street gangs can drive violence and destabilize neighborhoods while tying into illicit drug activity that poses additional risks to residents and to the young people pulled into gang life.

1 Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) Easy Access to Juvenile Populations (EZAPOP) Riverside County Probation Department

66