Of the 48 people discharged in Rotorua last year, 27 were male and 21 were female.
The number of people discharged without conviction nationally also dropped from 3185 in 2011 to 2720 in 2012, to 2199 last year.
Last month, Maori King Tuheitia's son, Korotangi Paki, 19, made headlines when he was let off charges of burglary, theft and drink driving after his defence counsel successfully argued a conviction would ruin his chances of succeeding to the throne.
In the High Court in Auckland earlier this month, Justice Helen Winkelmann decided not to convict the teen who assaulted 15-year-old Stephen Dudley before his death on June 6 last year.
Rotorua lawyer Rob Vigor-Brown said that decision would "alter the law".
The test to qualify for a discharge without conviction had been "rigorously" applied up until now, but Justice Winkelmann's decision marked a turning point, he said.
"Historically it has been very difficult to prove to the court's satisfaction that a conviction would impact on the young person's ability to gain meaningful employment.
"Now it appears to be accepted by the court that it is a general principle."
Mr Vigor-Brown agreed with Justice Winkelmann's comments that a conviction would have a disproportionate impact on a young person's ability to play a worthwhile role in society, especially given adolescents didn't reach full brain development until their early 20s.
However, Sensible Sentencing Trust national spokeswoman Ruth Money said while the number had come down, more discharges were being granted for "inappropriate" crimes such as assault and drink driving causing injury.
Districts Courts general manager Tony Fisher said a judge had the ability to grant a discharge without conviction under the 2002 Sentencing Act, unless there was a minimum sentence specified for the offence.
