SOUTH CAROLINA
Disproportionate Minority Confinement
What is Disproportionate Minority Confinement (DMC)? Under the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act (JJDPA), disproportionate minority confinement (DMC) exists when the proportion of youths detained or confined in secure detention facilities, secure correctional facilities, jails and lockups who are members of minority groups exceed their groups' proportions in the general population.
How widespread is DMC? In virtually every state, at every stage of the juvenile justice system, youth of color are overrepresented and receive disparate treatment, particularly in secure confinement.
State Profile: South Carolina
- South Carolina has an estimated minority youth population of 39%.
- Minority youth come into contact with the criminal justice system at a rate disproportionate to their share of the state's population.
- In 1998, minority youth accounted for 58% of arrests, 57% of the admissions to secure correctional facilities, and 61% of the admissions to the Department of Juvenile Justice long-term institutions.
- The 1999 arrest rates for African-American youth were 58%, while the percentages for all other minority groups were even lower than their respective percentages of the population.
Source: Three-Year Plan. 2000-2002. Department of Public Safety.
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What must states do to comply with the DMC mandate? Current law directs states to identify the extent to which disproportionate minority confinement exists, to assess the reason that it exists and to develop intervention strategies to address the causes for disproportionate minority confinement. The law does not require, and has never resulted in, the release of any youths from custody based on race, nor has it required numerical quotas for arrests. No state's funding under the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act has ever been reduced as a result of noncompliance with this provision.
Contact Information: To provide comments or obtain additional information on South Carolina's state plan to address disproportionate minority confinement, contact South Carolina's state juvenile justice specialist:
Laura Whitlock
Juvenile Justice Specialist
SC Department of Public Safety
5400 Broad River Road
Modular 15
Columbia, SC 29212-3540
Phone: (803) 896-8713
Fax: (803) 896-8714
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