There has been a dramatic increase in violent crime among youth in recent years. Random, unprovoked attacks by adolescents, known as "wildings," have become increasingly common in large urban centers such as New York. In addition, there has been a rise in the number of young people who kill. According to FBI statistics, the arrests of murderers under the age of eighteen increased by more than 20 percent during the 1980's, even though the population of American teens decreased by 2 percent during the same period (Toufexis, 1989, p. 52). Killings by young people are often brutal and compassionless. In addition, the murders are often committed over trivial things, "like a pair of sneakers, a fancy shirt, or a bit of loose change" (Kramer, 1988, p. 7). Reported incidents have included such situations as drive-by shootings, shootings of friends, and disputes over girl-friends (Witkin, 1991, pp. 26-27).
A murder in cold-blood, with no apparent motive, was committed by a 16-year-old boy who drove more than 100 miles from his home to where he shot a woman he had never met before. In explaining his actions to the police, the boy said that he "just wanted to get away and kill somebody" (Toufexis, 1989, p. 52). It is not just inner-city or troubled youth who commit murders. For example, a 16-year-old boy in Denver charged with murder was an honors student in high school (Toufexis, 1989, p. 52). In recent years, the children who commit murders have become increasingly younger. In addition, the occurrence of youthful killings has been spreading beyond the confines of the nation's inner cities. An example which illustrates this can be seen "in middle-class Lumberton, N.J., outside Philadelphia, [where] a 14-year-old boy took a revolver from his father's gun cabinet... and fatally shot a basketball teammate in the back of the head" (Witkin, 1991, p. 27).
There are a number of possible causes for murder by young people. For examp...