In fact, 72 percent of the juvenile offenders interviewed by researchers from the Florida Family Council said they come from homes where their mother and father are not married. Sixty-two percent reported that their dads lived at home sometimes or never.

Results of the survey bolster claims of fathers' rights and family preservation activists who have gained momentum recently in their bid to reform Florida divorce and child custody laws.

"There is a remarkably high rate of father absence in the lives of juvenile offenders," said Mark Merrill, president of the Florida Family Council, a Tampa-based religious group. "This data clearly indicate father absence played a role in propelling kids into criminal activity.