Emerging adulthood is a critical developmental stage, and justice system involvement during this period can have lasting impacts on employment, education, long-term stability and rearrest rates. Understanding not just how many young adults are arrested but the severity of those arrests helps inform where diversion, rehabilitation, and support systems can be most effective.

Arrests among emerging adults in Westchester County were highest in 2022 and 2023 and have steadily declined through 2025, indicating stabilization following post-pandemic increases. At the same time, the composition of arrests has shifted meaningfully. Felony arrests have declined both in absolute terms and as a share of total arrests, dropping from 37% in 2021 to about 30% in 2025. Misdemeanors consistently accounted for the majority of arrests and now represent a growing share of system contact for this group, increasing from 56% in 2021 to about 65% in 2025.

Importantly, the sustained misdemeanor volume creates an expanding pool of young adults eligible for local court diversion and restorative justice programs, since felony charges do not always qualify for these alternatives. Together, these trends tell a dual story: decreasing severity at the felony level and increasing need for robust diversion infrastructure to address the large share of cases now concentrated in the misdemeanor tier.

Data is sourced from the New York State Unified Court System's Office of Court Administration Statistics Act (OCA-STAT) extract, compiled by the Division of Technology & Court Research (DoTCR), and includes all arraigned individuals ages 18-24 from 2021-2025. Severity classification is based on the top charge at arraignment and does not reflect final case outcomes.