<P> The United States incarcerates more of its youth than any other country in the world through the juvenile courts and the adult criminal justice system, which reflects the larger trends in incarceration practices in the United States . In 2010, approximately 70,800 juveniles were incarcerated in youth detention facilities alone . Approximately 500,000 youth are brought to detention centers in a given year . This data does not reflect juveniles tried as adults . Around 40% are incarcerated in privatized, for - profit facilities . </P> <P> The system that is currently operational in the United States was created under the 1974 Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act . </P>

How many juvenile offenders are there in the us