In the early 1990's, there were predictions of a coming wave of "superpredators"

Juvenile violent crime trends of the late 1980's and the early 1990's led some to conclude that the nature of juvenile violence had changed and that a new breed of juveniles—the superpredator—was now a threat to U.S. society. These were juveniles for whom violence was a way of life—new delinquents unlike youth of past generations. Many accepted this concept. Nearly every State changed its laws to make it easier to handle more youth as adult criminals. The fear of a new breed of juvenile delinquent even led many to wonder if the juvenile justice system itself was obsolete. In the mid-1990's, this fear was heightened by the realization that the juvenile population would increase into the next decade. More juveniles meant more superpredators.

1999 National Report Series, Juvenile Justice Bulletin: Juvenile Justice: A Century of Change	February 2000