This chapter quantifies the flow of delinquency cases through each of the following stages of the juvenile court system.

Detention: Juvenile courts sometimes hold youth in secure detention facilities during court processing to protect the community, to ensure a juvenile's appearance at subsequent court hearings, to secure the juvenile's own safety, or for the purpose of evaluating the juvenile. This Report describes the use of detention only between court referral and case disposition, although juveniles can be detained by police prior to referral and also after disposition while awaiting placement elsewhere.

Intake: Formal processing of a case involves the filing of a petition that requests an adjudicatory or waiver hearing. Informally processed cases, on the other hand, are handled without a petition and without an adjudicatory or waiver hearing.

Waiver: One of the first decisions made at intake is whether a case should be processed in the criminal (adult) justice system rather than in the juvenile court. Most states have more than one mechanism for transferring cases to criminal court: prosecutors may have the authority to file certain juvenile cases directly in criminal court; state statute may govern that cases meeting certain age and offense criteria be excluded from juvenile court jurisdiction and filed directly in criminal court; and a juvenile court judge may waive juvenile court jurisdiction in certain juvenile cases, thus authorizing a transfer to criminal court. This Report describes those cases that were transferred to criminal court by judicial waiver only.

Adjudication: At an adjudicatory hearing, a youth may be adjudicated (judged) a delinquent if the juvenile court determines that the youth did commit the offense(s) charged in the petition. If the youth is adjudicated, the case proceeds to a disposition hearing. Alternatively, a case can be dismissed or continued in contemplation of dismissal. In these cases where the youth is not adjudicated delinquent, the court can recommend that the youth take some actions prior to the final adjudication decision, such as paying restitution or voluntarily attending drug counseling.

Disposition: Disposition options include commitment to an institution or other residential facility, probation supervision, or a variety of other sanctions, such as community service, restitution or fines, or referral to an outside agency or treatment program. This Report characterizes case disposition by the most severe or restrictive sanction. For example, although most youth in out-of-home placements are also technically on probation, in this Report cases resulting in placement are not included in the probation group.

This chapter describes case processing by offense and by demographics (age, gender, and race) of the juveniles involved, focusing on cases disposed in 2000 and examining trends from 1985 through 2000.

Detention

• The number of delinquency cases involving detention increased 41% between 1985 and 2000, from 234,600 to 329,800. The largest relative increase was for drug offense cases (139%), followed by person cases (100%), and public order cases (78%). In contrast, the number of detained property offense cases declined 10% during this period.

• Despite the decline in the number of detained property cases, these cases still accounted for the largest volume of cases involving detention.

• Despite the growth in the volume of delinquency cases involving detention, the proportion of cases detained was about the same in 2000 as in 1985 (20% vs. 21%).

• For person, property, and public order offense cases, the proportion of cases involving detention changed very little between 1985 and 2000—varying 6 to 9 percentage points, with 1990 being the peak year.

• The use of detention for drug offense cases reached a peak in 1990 when 38% of such cases were detained prior to disposition.

Offense profile of detained delinquency cases:

Most serious offense	1985	2000
Person	19%	28%
Property	52	33
Drugs	7	11
Public order	22	28
Total	100%	100%
Number of cases	234,600	329,800
Note: Detail may not total 100% because of rounding.

• Compared with 1985, the 2000 detention caseload contained greater proportions of person, drug, and public order offense cases and a smaller proportion of property offense cases.

The number of drug offense and person offense cases involving detention more than doubled between 1985 and 2000

In 2000, juveniles were detained between referral and disposition in 20% of all delinquency cases processed

Black youth were overrepresented in the detention caseload compared with their proportions in the overall delinquency caseload

• Although black youth were involved in 28% of all delinquency cases processed in 2000, they were involved in 35% of detained cases.

• This overrepresentation was greatest for drug offense cases: blacks accounted for 22% of all drug cases processed but 37% of drug cases detained.

• The proportion of detained delinquency cases involving black youth has changed little between the late 1980s and 2000.

• In all offense categories, youth of other races made up less than 5% of all cases processed and of those involving detention.

Age

• In each year from 1985 through 2000, delinquency cases involving youth age 16 or older were more likely to be detained than were cases involving youth age 15 or younger. This same pattern held for person and property offense cases.

• For both age groups, drug offense cases were more likely to involve detention than were other offense cases between 1987 and 1992. By 2000, however, person offense and public order offense cases were more likely to involve detention than were drug offense cases.

Gender

• Delinquency cases involving males were more likely to involve detention than were cases involving females during each year from 1985 through 2000. With few exceptions, this pattern was true across the four general offense categories.

Across offense categories, detention was more likely in cases involving older youth than younger youth, males than females, and black juveniles than white juveniles

Percentage of delinquency cases detained by age group:

	15 or younger					16 or older
Year	All	Person	Property	Drugs	Public order	All	Person	Property	Drugs	Public order
1985	19%	23%	16%	20%	28%	23%	28%	21%	22%	26%
1986	19	24	16	24	27	23	28	20	26	24
1987	18	22	15	29	26	22	26	19	29	24
1988	19	23	15	34	26	22	27	19	32	23
1989	20	24	16	37	27	24	28	19	36	25
1990	22	26	18	39	28	25	30	21	37	26
1991	20	24	16	39	25	22	28	19	36	23
1992	19	22	16	36	24	22	27	18	33	22
1993	18	21	15	29	22	21	27	17	27	22
1994	18	21	14	25	22	21	27	17	24	21
1995	16	20	12	21	18	18	25	15	20	19
1996	16	21	12	20	18	18	26	14	20	19
1997	17	22	13	19	21	20	27	16	21	22
1998	17	21	14	21	20	21	26	17	24	23
1999	19	22	15	21	22	22	28	19	24	23
2000	19	22	15	17	22	22	28	18	21	25

Percentage of delinquency cases detained by gender:

	Male					Female
Year	All	Person	Property	Drugs	Public order	All	Person	Property	Drugs	Public order
1985	21%	27%	19%	22%	26%	17%	18%	13%	19%	29%
1986	22	27	19	26	26	17	19	13	21	27
1987	21	25	17	30	25	16	17	11	23	25
1988	21	26	18	33	25	16	18	12	26	25
1989	22	27	18	38	26	17	19	12	28	25
1990	24	29	20	39	28	18	20	14	28	26
1991	22	27	18	38	25	15	18	12	27	21
1992	21	26	18	35	23	15	17	12	26	23
1993	20	25	17	29	23	14	17	11	22	19
1994	20	25	17	26	23	14	17	11	18	18
1995	18	23	15	22	20	12	17	8	16	15
1996	18	24	14	21	19	12	19	8	13	16
1997	20	25	16	21	22	14	19	9	16	19
1998	20	24	17	24	22	15	18	10	20	18
1999	22	25	18	23	23	17	20	12	20	20
2000	21	26	18	20	24	17	20	12	15	22

Percentage of delinquency cases detained by race:

	White					Black
Year	All	Person	Property	Drugs	Public order	All	Person	Property	Drugs	Public order
1985	18%	21%	16%	18%	25%	26%	30%	23%	33%	31%
1986	18	21	15	20	24	28	31	24	43	32
1987	17	19	14	20	23	27	29	22	48	30
1988	17	20	14	21	23	28	30	23	51	30
1989	18	22	15	23	24	29	30	23	56	30
1990	20	24	17	27	26	29	31	24	52	31
1991	18	22	15	25	23	27	30	22	49	27
1992	18	21	15	25	23	25	27	21	45	24
1993	17	21	14	20	21	24	26	19	39	24
1994	17	21	14	18	21	23	26	18	36	22
1995	14	19	12	14	17	22	25	17	34	20
1996	14	20	11	13	17	22	26	17	34	21
1997	16	21	12	14	20	23	27	18	34	23
1998	17	21	13	18	21	23	25	20	34	21
1999	18	22	15	17	20	25	26	20	38	28
2000	18	23	15	15	21	25	25	21	32	29

	Other race
Year	All	Person	Property	Drugs	Public order
1985	25%	31%	21%	26%	36%
1986	25	34	21	20	32
1987	24	31	21	29	30
1988	26	32	24	31	29
1989	27	31	24	32	30
1990	29	38	25	35	33
1991	24	30	21	33	27
1992	22	28	21	22	22
1993	22	31	18	18	27
1994	22	30	18	19	27
1995	21	29	16	17	29
1996	21	31	15	20	31
1997	22	32	16	19	32
1998	22	30	16	22	31
1999	23	32	17	21	29
2000	24	32	18	22	28

Race

• Each year between 1985 and 2000, the use of detention was more likely for delinquency cases involving black youth than for cases involving white youth or youth of other races.

• Regardless of offense, cases involving black youth were more likely to be detained than cases involving white youth in each year between 1985 and 2000, except for public order in 1998.

• For white youth and youth of other races, person offense cases were more likely to involve detention than were other offense cases in 2000.

• With few exceptions, property offense cases were least likely to involve detention within each race group between 1985 and 2000.

Intake Decision

• The overall delinquency caseload increased 43% between 1985 and 2000, while the number of nonpetitioned delinquency cases increased just 12%. This means that over the period from 1985 to 2000, the likelihood that a delinquency case would be handled informally declined.

• Since 1992, petitioned cases have outnumbered nonpetitioned cases. In 2000, there were 36% more petitioned than nonpetitioned delinquency cases.

• The number of petitioned drug offense cases increased 275% between 1985 and 2000—more than any other offense category.

• Unlike the trends for other offense categories, the number of formally handled property offense cases peaked in 1996 and then declined through 2000.

Offense profile of delinquency cases, 2000:

Most serious offense	Nonpetitioned	Petitioned
Person	21%	24%
Property	44	39
Drugs	11	13
Public order	23	25
Total	100%	100%
Number of cases	693,000	940,300
Note: Detail may not total 100% because of rounding.

• Compared with nonpetitioned cases, petitioned cases in 2000 involved higher proportions of person, drug, and public order offenses and a lower proportion of property offenses.

The number of petitioned delinquency cases increased 81% between 1985 and 2000

Between 1985 and 2000, the petitioned caseload increased for all offense categories

In 2000, juvenile courts petitioned nearly 6 in 10 delinquency cases

Most serious offense	Number of petitioned cases		Petitioned cases as a percent of all cases
Total Delinquency	940,300		58%
Person offenses	227,000		60
Criminal homicide	1,400		82
Forcible rape	3,700		78
Robbery	19,300		86
Aggravated assault	36,700		72
Simple assault	139,200		54
Other violent sex offenses	9,800		78
Other person offenses	16,900		62
Property offenses	363,000		54
Burglary	84,200		78
Larceny-theft	129,700		43
Motor vehicle theft	29,400		77
Arson	5,300		64
Vandalism	54,900		51
Trespassing	22,700		46
Stolen property offenses	17,600		70
Other property offenses	19,200		67
Drug law violations	117,800		61
Public order offenses	232,600		59
Obstruction of justice	127,100		71
Disorderly conduct	36,200		40
Weapons offenses	22,600		60
Liquor law violations	8,900		33
Nonviolent sex offenses	7,900		53
Other public order offenses	29,900		65
Violent Crime Index*	61,000		76
Property Crime Index**	248,500		54
* Includes criminal homicide, forcible rape, robbery, and aggravated assault. ** Includes burglary, larceny-theft, motor vehicle theft, and arson. Note: Detail may not add to totals because of rounding.

Between 1985 and 2000, the use of formal processing increased for all four general offense categories

• Analysis of referral offenses showed that the likelihood of formal handling was greater for more serious offenses within the same general offense category. In 2000, for example, 72% of aggravated assault cases were handled formally, compared with 54% of simple assault cases. Similarly, more than three-quarters of burglary and motor vehicle theft cases were handled formally by juvenile courts, compared with 43% of larceny-theft and 51% of vandalism cases.

• Between 1985 and 2000, the use of formal processing increased for all four general offense categories—increasing more for drug offense cases than for any of the other general offense categories. The likelihood of formal processing increased 18 percentage points for drug offense cases (from 43% to 61%), compared with a 6-percentage point increase for person offense cases (from 54% to 60%).

• In each year between 1988 and 2000, drug offense cases were more likely than other offense cases to be handled formally.

Age

• In each year between 1985 and 2000, delinquency cases involving juveniles age 16 or older were more likely to be petitioned than were cases involving younger juveniles.

• In 2000, 55% of delinquency cases involving youth age 15 or younger were petitioned, compared with 61% of cases involving older youth.

• Since 1991, the proportion of drug offense cases petitioned declined for both age groups.

• Among youth age 15 or younger, drug offense cases were most likely to be handled formally of any offense category between 1987 and 2000 while property offense cases were least likely to be handled formally during this period.

Gender

• Across all offenses, the proportion of delinquency cases petitioned increased for males and females between 1985 and 2000.

• Regardless of offense, juvenile courts were more likely to petition cases involving males than females.

• For both males and females, property offense cases were least likely to be petitioned than cases involving other offense categories.

The likelihood of formal handling increased between 1985 and 2000 for all demographic categories

Percentage of delinquency cases petitioned by age group:

	15 or younger					16 or older
Year	All	Person	Property	Drugs	Public order	All	Person	Property	Drugs	Public order
1985	42%	51%	40%	38%	45%	50%	59%	50%	46%	46%
1986	44	52	42	46	45	50	59	50	51	46
1987	44	51	41	52	46	51	59	50	55	47
1988	45	52	42	57	47	52	58	51	59	49
1989	48	53	45	62	50	54	60	53	62	50
1990	47	52	44	66	50	54	59	52	65	51
1991	47	52	44	68	49	54	59	52	68	50
1992	48	52	45	66	50	55	58	52	66	53
1993	50	54	46	62	52	57	61	54	64	56
1994	50	54	47	59	52	58	62	55	61	57
1995	51	55	47	58	54	59	63	56	62	60
1996	53	57	50	58	55	60	64	57	62	60
1997	53	56	50	57	55	59	63	57	61	60
1998	54	57	51	59	56	60	63	57	63	61
1999	55	58	51	59	56	60	64	57	62	61
2000	55	58	52	59	57	61	65	58	62	61

Percentage of delinquency cases petitioned by gender:

	Male					Female
Year	All	Person	Property	Drugs	Public order	All	Person	Property	Drugs	Public order
1985	48%	57%	47%	45%	46%	35%	41%	31%	33%	44%
1986	49	58	48	51	46	36	43	32	38	43
1987	50	57	48	56	47	36	42	31	43	43
1988	51	57	49	60	49	37	43	32	46	44
1989	53	58	51	64	51	40	45	35	48	47
1990	52	58	50	68	51	38	43	33	52	46
1991	53	58	50	70	51	39	44	34	53	47
1992	53	57	51	68	52	39	43	34	50	47
1993	55	60	53	65	55	41	46	36	48	49
1994	56	60	53	63	56	43	47	38	46	50
1995	57	61	53	62	58	43	49	38	48	51
1996	59	63	56	62	58	46	51	40	49	52
1997	59	61	56	61	59	46	51	41	50	53
1998	59	62	57	63	60	48	52	42	52	54
1999	60	62	57	63	60	48	53	42	52	53
2000	60	63	58	62	61	49	53	42	52	54

Race

• The proportion of delinquency cases petitioned increased for all racial groups between 1985 and 2000.

• Delinquency cases involving black juveniles were more likely to be petitioned than were cases involving white youth or youth of other races.

• In 2000, racial differences in the likelihood of petitioning were greatest for drug offense cases: 78% of drug cases involving black juveniles were petitioned, compared with 57% for juveniles of other races and 56% for white juveniles.

• For black juveniles, drug offense cases were more likely to be handled formally than any other offense category between 1985 and 2000. Property offense cases were least likely to be handled formally during this period.

Percentage of delinquency cases petitioned by race:

	White					Black
Year	All	Person	Property	Drugs	Public order	All	Person	Property	Drugs	Public order
1985	42%	47%	41%	39%	42%	56%	64%	52%	60%	55%
1986	43	49	43	43	42	57	63	53	69	56
1987	43	48	42	45	42	59	64	54	74	60
1988	44	48	43	48	44	58	63	53	76	59
1989	46	50	45	49	46	61	64	57	80	60
1990	45	49	44	53	46	60	62	54	82	61
1991	46	50	44	53	45	59	62	54	83	60
1992	47	50	45	52	48	58	61	53	81	58
1993	49	52	47	51	51	60	64	55	80	60
1994	49	52	48	50	52	61	65	56	78	60
1995	51	54	48	52	55	61	64	55	77	61
1996	53	57	51	52	55	62	65	57	78	61
1997	53	55	51	52	56	62	64	57	77	62
1998	54	56	52	54	56	65	65	59	80	65
1999	54	56	52	54	56	65	67	60	80	65
2000	55	58	52	56	57	64	66	60	78	65

	Other race
Year	All	Person	Property	Drugs	Public order
1985	45%	59%	42%	33%	45%
1986	47	61	45	41	44
1987	47	60	45	37	45
1988	49	61	48	44	45
1989	50	59	48	43	48
1990	51	60	48	43	53
1991	51	58	49	44	48
1992	50	56	48	44	51
1993	49	59	47	50	47
1994	50	60	48	49	48
1995	52	59	49	48	51
1996	51	60	47	54	56
1997	51	58	47	52	55
1998	52	56	47	54	58
1999	52	57	48	56	58
2000	55	59	51	57	59

Waiver

• The number of delinquency cases judicially waived to criminal court in 1994 was 70% greater than the number waived in 1985. This increase was followed by a 54% decline between 1994 and 2000. As a result, the number of cases waived in 2000 was 21% less than the number waived in 1985.

• The number of judicially waived person offense cases more than doubled between 1985 and 1994 and then declined 58% through 2000. As a result, the number of person offense cases judicially waived in 2000 was 6% less than the number waived in 1985.

• The number of drug offense cases judicially waived increased sharply through 1991. The number of waived drug offense cases stabilized between 1992 and 2000, averaging about 1,200 cases per year.

• The number of waived property offense cases declined 55% between 1994 and 2000. By 2000, the number of waived property offense cases was 47% less than the number waived in 1985.

• For public order offenses, the number of cases waived in 2000 was 6% less than the number waived in 1985.

• One probable reason for the decline in the number of judicial waivers after 1994 was the large increase in the number of states that passed legislation excluding certain serious offenses from juvenile court jurisdiction and legislation permitting the prosecutor to file certain cases directly in criminal court.

The number of cases judicially waived to criminal court peaked in 1994 at 12,100 cases

Although the number of waived cases has dropped in recent years, the number was higher in 2000 than in 1985 for drug offense cases

Between 1985 and 2000, person offense cases were most likely to be judicially waived—except for 1989 through 1992, when drug offense cases were most likely to be waived

The offense profile of cases judicially waived to criminal court changed considerably between 1985 and 2000

• The proportion of all waived delinquency cases that involved a property offense as the most serious charge declined from 54% in 1985 to 36% in 2000.

• The proportion of person offenses among judicially waived cases grew from 28% in 1987 to a peak of 47% in 1995, and then dropped to 40% in 2000.

• The waived caseload contained a larger share of drug offenses in 2000 (14%) than in 1985 (5%).

• On average, public order offense cases accounted for 8% of the waived caseload between 1985 and 2000.

Age

• In 2000, 1.2% of all petitioned delinquency cases involving juveniles age 16 or older were waived to criminal court, compared with 0.1% of cases involving younger juveniles.

• For older juveniles, the probability of waiver peaked in 1991 at 3.2% and then declined through 2000. This pattern was most marked in waivers for older juveniles charged with drug offenses, which peaked at 6.5% in 1991 and then dropped to 1.0% by 2000.

• Regardless of offense, less than 1% of all petitioned delinquency cases involving juveniles age 15 or younger were waived to criminal court between 1985 and 2000.

Gender

• Regardless of offense, cases involving males were more likely to be judicially waived than cases involving females.

• For both males and females, the proportion of petitioned drug offense cases judicially waived increased sharply between 1985 and 1991 and then declined through 2000.

• For males, the use of judicial waiver for petitioned drug offense cases showed a substantial decline between 1991 and 2000 (from 4.3% to 0.7%). Petitioned drug offense cases involving females followed the same pattern, decreasing from 2.2% in 1991 to 0.4% in 2000.

• Females were 4% to 7% of the judicially waived caseload between 1985 and 2000.

The probability of waiver to criminal court is substantially greater for cases involving older juveniles than for cases involving younger juveniles

Percentage of petitioned delinquency cases judicially waived by age group:

	15 or younger					16 or older
Year	All	Person	Property	Drugs	Public order	All	Person	Property	Drugs	Public order
1985	0.2%	0.4%	0.1%	0.0%	0.1%	2.9%	5.1%	2.9%	1.6%	1.4%
1986	0.2	0.4	0.1	0.1	0.1	2.7	4.5	2.7	1.9	1.2
1987	0.2	0.4	0.1	0.1	0.1	2.4	3.7	2.5	2.3	0.9
1988	0.2	0.4	0.1	0.2	0.1	2.3	3.7	2.4	2.3	1.0
1989	0.3	0.5	0.2	0.4	0.1	2.6	3.9	2.5	4.2	1.0
1990	0.2	0.5	0.1	0.5	0.1	2.6	4.1	2.4	4.0	1.1
1991	0.3	0.6	0.1	0.5	0.2	3.2	4.8	2.7	6.5	1.2
1992	0.3	0.6	0.2	0.4	0.2	2.8	5.0	2.3	3.9	1.3
1993	0.3	0.6	0.2	0.4	0.2	2.9	5.6	2.3	3.3	1.2
1994	0.3	0.7	0.2	0.3	0.1	2.8	5.4	2.4	2.7	1.1
1995	0.3	0.8	0.2	0.3	0.1	2.1	4.4	1.7	2.0	0.6
1996	0.3	0.7	0.2	0.2	0.1	2.1	4.3	1.8	2.0	0.6
1997	0.2	0.4	0.1	0.2	0.1	1.7	3.6	1.6	1.7	0.5
1998	0.2	0.3	0.1	0.2	0.1	1.6	2.8	1.6	1.6	0.5
1999	0.2	0.3	0.1	0.2	0.1	1.4	2.7	1.4	1.5	0.5
2000	0.1	0.3	0.1	0.1	0.1	1.2	2.1	1.2	1.0	0.4

Percentage of petitioned delinquency cases judicially waived by gender:

	Male					Female
Year	All	Person	Property	Drugs	Public order	All	Person	Property	Drugs	Public order
1985	1.5%	2.7%	1.4%	1.1%	0.8%	0.4%	0.7%	0.4%	0.4%	0.2%
1986	1.5	2.4	1.3	1.3	0.8	0.5	0.8	0.6	0.6	0.2
1987	1.4	2.1	1.3	1.7	0.6	0.4	0.5	0.4	0.6	0.3
1988	1.3	2.0	1.2	1.6	0.6	0.4	0.5	0.3	1.1	0.1
1989	1.5	2.2	1.3	2.9	0.6	0.4	0.4	0.4	1.1	0.2
1990	1.4	2.2	1.2	2.8	0.7	0.4	0.3	0.4	1.3	0.1
1991	1.7	2.6	1.3	4.3	0.8	0.4	0.6	0.3	2.2	0.0
1992	1.6	2.8	1.1	2.6	0.8	0.4	0.4	0.3	0.9	0.2
1993	1.6	3.0	1.2	2.3	0.8	0.3	0.5	0.4	0.4	0.1
1994	1.6	3.1	1.2	1.8	0.7	0.4	0.5	0.4	0.5	0.1
1995	1.3	2.6	0.9	1.4	0.5	0.2	0.4	0.2	0.3	0.1
1996	1.3	2.6	1.0	1.4	0.4	0.3	0.4	0.2	0.5	0.0
1997	1.1	2.1	0.9	1.3	0.4	0.2	0.4	0.2	0.2	0.1
1998	1.0	1.6	0.8	1.2	0.4	0.3	0.4	0.3	0.5	0.1
1999	0.9	1.5	0.8	1.0	0.4	0.2	0.3	0.2	0.5	0.1
2000	0.7	1.2	0.7	0.7	0.3	0.2	0.3	0.1	0.4	0.1

Percentage of petitioned delinquency cases judicially waived by race:

	White					Black
Year	All	Person	Property	Drugs	Public order	All	Person	Property	Drugs	Public order
1985	1.2%	2.1%	1.2%	0.6%	0.6%	1.8%	2.7%	1.5%	2.1%	1.1%
1986	1.1	1.7	1.2	0.8	0.6	1.8	2.7	1.5	2.0	0.9
1987	1.1	1.6	1.2	1.0	0.4	1.5	2.1	1.3	2.2	0.7
1988	1.0	1.4	1.1	1.1	0.5	1.5	2.1	1.2	2.0	0.6
1989	1.0	1.5	1.1	1.3	0.4	1.8	2.4	1.3	4.0	0.8
1990	0.9	1.3	1.0	1.0	0.4	1.9	2.6	1.2	4.0	1.0
1991	1.2	1.9	1.1	1.5	0.5	2.1	2.8	1.3	5.8	0.9
1992	1.1	1.9	0.9	1.0	0.5	1.9	2.9	1.3	3.5	1.1
1993	1.1	1.9	1.0	1.1	0.5	2.0	3.4	1.3	3.0	1.0
1994	1.1	2.1	1.0	1.0	0.5	1.8	3.1	1.1	2.4	0.7
1995	0.8	1.7	0.7	0.7	0.3	1.6	2.8	1.0	2.2	0.6
1996	0.9	1.9	0.8	0.8	0.2	1.4	2.5	1.0	2.0	0.5
1997	0.7	1.4	0.7	0.7	0.2	1.2	2.0	0.8	1.8	0.5
1998	0.7	1.2	0.7	0.6	0.2	1.1	1.5	0.8	1.9	0.4
1999	0.6	1.1	0.6	0.6	0.3	1.0	1.4	0.8	1.7	0.4
2000	0.5	0.8	0.5	0.4	0.2	0.8	1.2	0.6	1.5	0.3

	Other race
Year	All	Person	Property	Drugs	Public order
1985	0.9%	1.7%	0.7%	0.9%	0.5%
1986	0.7	2.3	0.3	1.7	0.0
1987	1.0	2.5	0.6	0.2	1.0
1988	0.8	1.7	0.8	0.1	0.2
1989	0.6	1.0	0.6	0.0	0.2
1990	0.9	2.5	0.6	0.2	0.2
1991	0.8	2.1	0.5	0.5	0.0
1992	1.2	3.2	0.6	1.9	0.4
1993	1.1	2.9	0.7	0.6	0.5
1994	1.5	3.4	0.8	1.2	1.0
1995	1.1	3.1	0.5	0.4	0.3
1996	0.9	2.2	0.6	0.9	0.2
1997	1.2	2.9	0.8	1.1	0.4
1998	0.8	2.2	0.4	0.3	0.4
1999	0.6	1.9	0.3	0.2	0.2
2000	0.5	1.3	0.3	0.0	0.2

Race

• Overall, delinquency cases involving black youth were more likely to be waived than were cases involving white youth or youth of other races each year between 1985 and 2000.

• Regardless of offense, cases involving black youth were more likely to be judicially waived than were cases involving white youth each year between 1985 and 2000.

• For white youth and youth of other races, person offense cases were most likely to be judicially waived of any offense category between 1985 and 2000. For black youth, drug offense cases were most likely to be judicially waived during this period.

• Among black juveniles, the use of waiver to criminal court for cases involving drug offenses peaked in 1991 (5.8%) and then declined through 2000.

• For white juveniles, the number of judicially waived cases increased 51% between 1985 and 1994. By 2000, the number of waived cases fell 48% from the 1994 peak.

• For black juveniles, the number of judicially waived cases nearly doubled between 1985 and 1993, then declined 56% through 2000.

• For both white and black juveniles, the number of cases waived in 2000 was less than the number waived in 1985.

• Among white juveniles, the number of judicially waived person offense cases reached a peak in 1996—130% higher than the number of cases waived in 1985. By 2000, the number of waived person offense cases had declined 60% from the 1996 peak.

• Among black juveniles, the number of person offense cases waived increased 121% between 1985 and 1994. This increase was followed by a 64% decline through 2000.

Offense profile of waived cases:

Most serious offense	1985	2000
White
Person	26%	31%
Property	62	48
Drugs	4	9
Public order	8	11
Total	100%	100%
Black
Person	43%	39%
Property	43	29
Drugs	6	21
Public order	9	10
Total	100%	100%
Note: Detail may not total 100% because of rounding.

• From 1985 through 2000, person offense cases made up the largest share of the waived caseload for black youth.

• In comparison, property offense cases made up the largest share of the waived caseload for white youth each year from 1985 to 2000.

Among both white juveniles and black juveniles, the number of delinquency cases judicially waived to criminal court peaked in the mid-1990s and then declined

Adjudication

Between 1993 and 2000, as the use of formal processing increased, so did the proportion of delinquency cases that resulted in a delinquency adjudication or were judicially waived to criminal court

In 2000, youth were adjudicated delinquent in two-thirds of all petitioned delinquency cases

Most serious offense	Number of cases adjudicated delinquent		Percentage of petitioned cases adjudicated delinquent
Total delinquency	624,400		66%
Person	142,300		63
Criminal homicide	700		54
Forcible rape	2,300		64
Robbery	13,000		67
Aggravated assault	24,100		66
Simple assault	85,800		62
Other violent sex offenses	6,400		65
Other person offenses	10,000		59
Property	243,800		67
Burglary	61,700		73
Larceny-theft	85,500		66
Motor vehicle theft	21,500		73
Arson	3,500		65
Vandalism	34,600		63
Trespassing	13,500		60
Stolen property offenses	11,000		63
Other property offenses	12,600		65
Drug law violations	80,200		68
Public order offenses	158,200		68
Obstruction of justice	93,600		74
Disorderly conduct	21,100		58
Weapons offenses	15,600		69
Liquor law violations	5,500		62
Nonviolent sex offenses	5,500		70
Other public order offenses	16,800		56
Violent Crime Index	40,100		66
Property Crime Index	172,100		69

• In 1985, 30% of all delinquency cases resulted in either adjudication of delinquency or waiver to criminal court. By 2000, this proportion had increased to 39%.

• The likelihood of being adjudicated delinquent was greater for more serious offenses within the same general offense category. In 2000, for example, 66% of petitioned aggravated assault cases were adjudicated delinquent, compared with 62% of simple assault cases. Similarly, nearly three-quarters (73%) of petitioned burglary and motor vehicle theft cases were adjudicated delinquent, compared with 66% of larceny-theft and 65% of arson cases.

• Between 1997 and 2000, the number of delinquency cases in which the youth was adjudicated delinquent leveled off at approximately 627,000 cases

• Between 1985 and 2000, drug offense cases had the greatest percent increase in the number adjudicated delinquent (268%), followed by public order cases (165%), person cases (156%), and property cases (21%).

Offense profile of cases adjudicated delinquent:

Most serious offense	1985	2000
Person	16%	23%
Property	59	39
Drugs	6	13
Public order	18	25
Total	100%	100%
Note: Detail may not total 100% because of rounding.

• Compared with 1985, the 2000 adjudicated delinquent caseload included greater proportions of public order, person, and drug offense cases and a smaller proportion of property offense cases.

The number of cases in which the youth was adjudicated delinquent increased 85% between 1985 and 2000

The number of cases adjudicated delinquent increased for all four general offense categories between 1985 and 2000

After increases in recent years, the likelihood of petitioned cases resulting in an adjudication of delinquency in 2000 was similar to the likelihood in 1985

• Following a slight decline between the late 1980s and the mid-1990s, the likelihood of delinquency adjudication increased 7 percentage points between 1996 and 2000 (from 59% to 66%).

• The likelihood of a delinquency adjudication was about the same in 2000 as in 1985 for property, drug, and public order offense cases. In contrast, the likelihood of a delinquency adjudication for person offense cases was greater in 2000 than in 1985 (63% vs. 57%).

• Despite their increased likelihood of delinquency adjudication, person offense cases processed in 2000 were less likely to result in a delinquency adjudication than were cases in the other general offense categories. In fact, person offense cases were less likely to result in delinquency adjudication than property, drug, or public order offense cases each year between 1985 and 2000.

Age

• In each year from 1985 through 2000, juveniles age 15 or younger were more likely than older juveniles to be adjudicated delinquent, regardless of offense.

• Regardless of age, person offense cases were less likely than other offense categories to be adjudicated delinquent—this was true during each year between 1985 and 2000.

Gender

• In each year from 1985 through 2000, petitioned person and property offense cases involving males were more likely to result in a delinquency adjudication than were cases involving females.

• For both male and female juveniles, the likelihood of a delinquency adjudication increased more for person offense cases than for other offenses.

• For females, public order offense cases were more likely to result in a delinquency adjudication than were any other offense category cases between 1987 and 1998.

The likelihood of delinquency adjudication varied by demographic group

Percentage of petitioned cases adjudicated delinquent by age group:

	15 or younger					16 or older
Year	All	Person	Property	Drugs	Public order	All	Person	Property	Drugs	Public order
1985	66%	58%	67%	72%	71%	64%	55%	66%	68%	66%
1986	65	59	66	70	68	63	56	65	66	64
1987	64	58	65	66	68	62	57	63	62	63
1988	62	55	63	62	66	59	54	61	57	61
1989	63	57	64	67	67	62	56	63	63	62
1990	61	56	62	63	65	59	53	61	56	60
1991	60	55	61	62	62	58	53	60	56	58
1992	59	54	60	60	62	57	53	59	57	57
1993	60	56	61	61	65	58	53	59	58	60
1994	60	56	60	60	63	57	53	58	57	59
1995	59	56	60	60	62	57	53	58	57	57
1996	60	56	61	62	62	57	54	58	58	58
1997	62	59	63	65	65	60	56	61	61	62
1998	65	63	66	67	65	62	59	64	63	62
1999	68	65	69	70	69	65	61	66	66	65
2000	68	64	68	70	70	65	61	66	67	66

Percentage of petitioned cases adjudicated delinquent by gender:

	Male					Female
Year	All	Person	Property	Drugs	Public order	All	Person	Property	Drugs	Public order
1985	66%	58%	67%	70%	69%	62%	51%	62%	66%	68%
1986	65	59	66	68	66	60	51	61	66	65
1987	64	58	65	64	66	59	53	59	60	65
1988	61	56	63	59	63	57	51	56	56	63
1989	63	58	64	65	65	58	52	58	61	63
1990	61	55	63	59	62	57	52	57	56	61
1991	60	55	61	58	60	54	49	54	55	58
1992	59	54	60	58	60	53	50	54	53	56
1993	60	56	61	59	63	55	51	54	55	61
1994	59	55	61	59	62	54	52	53	55	59
1995	59	55	60	59	60	54	51	53	56	58
1996	60	57	61	60	61	54	51	54	56	59
1997	62	59	63	63	63	57	54	56	60	62
1998	65	62	66	65	63	61	58	62	62	63
1999	67	64	68	67	67	64	61	64	68	67
2000	67	63	68	68	68	64	60	63	68	68

Percentage of petitioned cases adjudicated delinquent by race:

	White					Black
Year	All	Person	Property	Drugs	Public order	All	Person	Property	Drugs	Public order
1985	67%	59%	68%	71%	70%	60%	53%	61%	65%	65%
1986	66	60	67	69	67	60	55	62	65	63
1987	65	59	65	66	67	59	56	60	60	62
1988	62	56	63	62	65	57	53	59	55	59
1989	63	58	64	64	66	60	55	61	65	62
1990	62	57	63	61	64	57	52	59	57	58
1991	60	55	61	60	60	56	52	57	57	58
1992	60	56	61	60	60	55	51	56	56	58
1993	62	58	62	61	65	55	51	55	57	59
1994	61	58	62	61	64	53	50	54	55	57
1995	60	57	60	60	61	54	51	54	56	56
1996	61	57	61	61	62	55	52	56	58	57
1997	63	59	63	64	64	58	55	58	59	60
1998	65	63	67	66	64	61	59	62	61	61
1999	68	66	69	70	68	63	60	65	63	65
2000	67	64	68	70	68	64	61	66	64	67

	Other race
Year	All	Person	Property	Drugs	Public order
1985	73%	69%	74%	77%	73%
1986	73	67	74	74	75
1987	71	65	72	68	74
1988	68	63	68	65	71
1989	69	66	69	68	71
1990	70	64	71	69	73
1991	68	66	69	64	71
1992	67	64	68	68	65
1993	65	64	65	67	64
1994	65	65	65	71	65
1995	65	63	66	68	63
1996	64	61	65	64	67
1997	68	69	67	72	68
1998	67	66	67	73	67
1999	69	68	68	75	69
2000	67	64	67	70	68

Race

• In each year between 1985 and 2000, cases involving black youth were less likely to result in a delinquency adjudication than were cases involving either white youth or youth of other races.

• For white juveniles and black juveniles, the likelihood of a delinquency adjudication for person offense cases was greater in 2000 than in 1985.

• For youth of other races, the likelihood of a delinquency adjudication was lower in 2000 than in 1985 across all offense categories.

• Between 1985 and 2000, with few exceptions, petitioned cases involving youth of other races were more likely to result in a delinquency adjudication than cases involving either white youth or black youth.

Dispositions: Out-of-Home Placement

• The number of drug offense cases adjudicated delinquent that resulted in out-of-home placement increased more than 200% between 1985 and 2000. During this period, the number of person and public order offense cases that resulted in out-of-home placement doubled. For property offense cases, the number of out-of-home placements did not change.

Offense profile of cases adjudicated delinquent resulting in out-of-home placement:

Most serious offense	1985	2000
Person	18%	24%
Property	55	36
Drugs	5	11
Public order	22	29
Total	100%	100%
Cases resulting in out-of-home placement	100,000	149,200
Note: Detail may not total 100% because of rounding.

• Property offense cases are the largest share of cases adjudicated delinquent that result in out-of-home placement.

• The offense profile of cases resulting in out-of-home placement changed between 1985 and 2000. The proportion of out-of-home placement cases that involved person, drug, and public order offenses increased, while the proportion involving property offenses declined.

The number of cases adjudicated delinquent resulting in out-of-home placement increased between 1985 and 2000

Between 1985 and 2000, the number of out-of-home placements increased for person, drug, and public order offense cases and decreased for property offense cases

The court ordered out-of-home placement in 24% of all cases adjudicated delinquent in 2000, down from 30% in 1985

• The relatively high rate of out-of-home placement in public order offense cases may be related to the fact that this offense category includes escapes from institutions, weapons offenses, and probation and parole violations.

• Although the percentage of cases adjudicated delinquent resulting in out-of-home placement declined between 1985 and 2000 for all four of the major offense categories, the number of cases adjudicated delinquent resulting in out-of-home placement increased 49%.

Age

• In each year from 1985 through 2000, person and property offense cases involving juveniles age 16 or older adjudicated delinquent were more likely to result in out-of-home placement than were cases involving youth age 15 or younger.

• For youth age 15 or younger, the use of out-of-home placement declined more for public order offense cases than for any other offense category between 1985 and 2000. During that period, the likelihood of out-of-home placement fell 13 percentage points for public order offense cases (from 39% to 26%), compared with an 8- percentage point decline for person offense cases (from 31% to 23%).

Gender

• Since 1985, person, property, and drug offense cases involving males adjudicated delinquent were more likely to result in out-of-home placement than were cases involving females.

• For females, public order offense cases adjudicated delinquent were more likely to result in out-of-home placement than were other offense cases. This was true in each year between 1985 and 2000.

• For both male and female juveniles, the use of out-of-home placement declined more for public order offense cases than for any other offense category between 1985 and 2000. During that period, the likelihood of out-of-home placement for public order offense cases fell 14 percentage points for females and 7 percentage points for males.

The likelihood of out-of-home placement declined between 1985 and 2000 for all demographic groups

Percentage of cases adjudicated delinquent resulting in out-of-home placement by age group:

	15 or younger					16 or older
Year	All	Person	Property	Drugs	Public order	All	Person	Property	Drugs	Public order
1985	30%	31%	27%	24%	39%	30%	33%	28%	22%	33%
1986	30	32	27	31	40	31	34	29	29	34
1987	30	31	27	34	40	30	32	28	29	35
1988	30	31	27	36	39	30	32	28	31	35
1989	31	33	27	38	40	31	34	28	34	36
1990	32	34	28	39	40	32	35	29	34	35
1991	30	34	26	39	38	30	35	27	34	32
1992	30	32	27	36	36	31	35	28	33	34
1993	28	30	25	32	32	29	33	27	29	30
1994	28	30	25	30	32	29	32	27	28	30
1995	26	28	24	25	31	27	31	26	23	29
1996	25	28	23	24	28	27	31	25	22	28
1997	24	26	22	22	28	26	30	25	21	29
1998	24	25	22	22	26	26	29	25	22	29
1999	23	24	21	21	26	26	28	24	22	28
2000	23	23	21	19	26	26	28	24	21	30

Percentage of cases adjudicated delinquent resulting in out-of-home placement by gender:

	Male					Female
Year	All	Person	Property	Drugs	Public order	All	Person	Property	Drugs	Public order
1985	30%	33%	29%	23%	36%	26%	26%	21%	21%	37%
1986	31	34	29	30	37	26	25	21	27	38
1987	31	33	28	32	37	25	21	21	26	37
1988	31	33	28	34	37	24	22	20	29	35
1989	32	35	28	36	39	26	24	21	31	36
1990	33	36	29	37	38	26	24	21	33	36
1991	31	36	28	37	36	24	25	20	29	35
1992	31	35	28	35	35	24	25	20	29	32
1993	29	33	27	31	32	22	24	19	26	28
1994	29	33	27	29	32	22	22	20	25	27
1995	28	31	26	24	31	20	21	18	16	26
1996	27	31	25	24	29	20	21	17	17	23
1997	27	30	25	22	30	19	20	16	15	24
1998	26	29	25	23	29	19	19	16	16	23
1999	25	27	24	23	28	18	19	15	15	23
2000	25	27	24	21	29	19	20	15	14	23

Percentage of cases adjudicated delinquent resulting in out-of-home placement by race:

	White					Black
Year	All	Person	Property	Drugs	Public order	All	Person	Property	Drugs	Public order
1985	29%	31%	27%	21%	37%	31%	32%	29%	28%	36%
1986	29	30	27	26	37	34	36	31	38	37
1987	29	30	26	27	37	33	34	31	37	38
1988	29	30	26	29	37	33	32	30	38	37
1989	30	33	26	31	38	33	34	30	40	38
1990	30	33	26	31	38	35	37	32	41	38
1991	27	31	24	30	35	35	37	32	40	36
1992	27	31	24	29	34	34	36	32	38	35
1993	25	28	23	24	30	33	35	32	36	33
1994	25	28	24	23	29	33	35	31	35	34
1995	24	27	23	18	29	31	31	30	31	33
1996	23	27	22	17	26	31	32	29	32	33
1997	23	26	22	16	27	30	30	28	31	33
1998	23	26	22	16	26	29	28	26	33	31
1999	22	25	21	16	26	28	27	25	32	29
2000	23	25	21	16	27	27	26	25	31	29

	Other race
Year	All	Person	Property	Public	Public order
1985	32%	35%	28%	32%	40%
1986	31	35	28	33	37
1987	30	34	27	31	36
1988	30	31	28	26	35
1989	33	35	30	30	39
1990	32	34	30	37	38
1991	34	41	30	43	38
1992	37	41	35	32	40
1993	33	40	31	20	34
1994	32	37	31	28	33
1995	28	32	27	23	30
1996	29	37	27	25	29
1997	26	28	25	16	28
1998	26	31	26	19	25
1999	24	28	24	15	24
2000	22	25	22	20	22

Race

• In each year between 1995 and 2000, property, drug, and public order offense cases involving black juveniles adjudicated delinquent were more likely to result in out-of-home placement than were cases involving white juveniles or youth of other races.

• With one exception, the proportion of cases adjudicated delinquent that resulted in out-of-home placement was smaller in 2000 than in 1985 for all races and across all offenses.

• Counter to the general decline in the use of out-of-home placement, the likelihood of out-of-home placement for drug offense cases involving black juveniles adjudicated delinquent was greater in 2000 (31%) than in 1985 (28%).

Dispositions: Probation

• Overall, between 1985 and 2000, the number of cases adjudicated delinquent that resulted in an order of probation more than doubled, compared with a 49% increase in the number of cases resulting in out-of-home placement. This demonstrates the juvenile court's relatively greater use of community sanctions in 2000 than in 1985.

• Since 1985, the largest percent increase in the number of cases adjudicated delinquent that received probation was for drug offense cases (267%), followed by public order offenses (214%), person offenses (193%), and property offenses (38%).

Offense profile of cases adjudicated delinquent that resulted in probation:

Most serious offense	1985	2000
Person	16%	23%
Property	61	40
Drugs	7	13
Public order	16	24
Total	100%	100%
Cases resulting in formal probation	189,500	393,300
Note: Detail may not total 100% because of rounding.

• In 2000, 40% of cases adjudicated delinquent that resulted in probation involved property offenses.

• The offense characteristics of cases adjudicated delinquent that resulted in probation changed somewhat between 1985 and 2000, with an increase in the proportion of cases involving person, drug, and public order offenses and a decrease in the proportion involving property offenses.

The number of cases adjudicated delinquent that resulted in a disposition of probation increased 108% between 1985 and 2000

The number of cases adjudicated delinquent that resulted in a disposition of probation increased for all offense categories between 1985 and 2000

Probation remains the most likely sanction imposed by juvenile courts

• Probation was the most restrictive disposition used in 393,300 cases adjudicated delinquent in 2000—63% of all such cases handled by juvenile courts.

• The likelihood of probation for cases adjudicated delinquent increased for person, property, and public order offense categories between 1985 and 2000.

• Counter to the pattern for the other offense categories, the use of probation for drug offense cases adjudicated delinquent was the same in 2000 as in 1985.

Age

• Once adjudicated delinquent, younger juveniles were more likely than older juveniles to be placed on probation. In 2000, 66% of cases involving youth age 15 or younger adjudicated delinquent resulted in probation, compared with 59% for youth age 16 or older.

• For both age groups, cases involving property offenses were generally more likely than cases in other offense categories to result in probation following a delinquency adjudication.

Gender

• For all offenses, females were more likely to be placed on probation following a delinquency adjudication than were males. In 2000, probation was ordered in 68% of cases adjudicated delinquent involving females and 62% of those involving males.

• For males, property offense cases adjudicated delinquent were more likely to result in probation than any other offense between 1989 and 2000.

Between 1985 and 2000, the likelihood of probation increased for all demographic groups

Percentage of cases adjudicated delinquent resulting in probation by age group:

	15 or younger					16 or older
Year	All	Person	Property	Drugs	Public order	All	Person	Property	Drugs	Public order
1985	57%	57%	59%	64%	51%	54%	53%	55%	62%	50%
1986	57	58	59	59	50	53	53	54	58	49
1987	57	56	60	58	50	53	51	54	59	48
1988	57	56	59	57	51	53	51	54	56	49
1989	57	56	59	54	51	53	50	55	53	49
1990	57	56	60	54	52	54	52	56	55	52
1991	57	55	60	52	52	54	51	56	50	51
1992	57	56	59	54	53	52	50	55	51	49
1993	56	56	58	53	53	51	49	53	51	49
1994	56	55	57	54	52	50	49	52	50	47
1995	57	56	58	57	52	51	49	53	52	47
1996	60	58	62	59	57	53	51	55	54	50
1997	62	62	63	63	57	55	55	57	58	51
1998	63	63	65	65	61	56	55	58	58	52
1999	66	65	67	66	64	58	58	60	60	55
2000	66	66	67	66	65	59	59	61	60	55

Percentage of cases adjudicated delinquent resulting in probation by gender:

	Male					Female
Year	All	Person	Property	Drugs	Public order	All	Person	Property	Drugs	Public order
1985	56%	55%	57%	62%	50%	58%	59%	60%	64%	51%
1986	55	55	57	58	50	57	60	60	61	49
1987	55	53	57	58	49	57	61	59	64	50
1988	54	53	56	56	49	58	59	60	59	52
1989	54	52	57	53	49	59	60	61	60	53
1990	55	53	58	54	51	60	63	62	59	53
1991	55	52	58	50	51	60	61	63	57	54
1992	54	52	57	51	50	60	60	62	59	55
1993	53	52	55	51	50	59	59	60	56	56
1994	52	51	55	51	49	58	60	59	58	54
1995	53	52	55	53	49	59	60	60	59	54
1996	56	54	58	56	53	61	63	63	61	57
1997	58	57	60	59	53	63	67	65	65	58
1998	59	58	61	60	55	65	67	66	66	61
1999	61	61	63	61	58	67	68	69	68	63
2000	62	62	64	62	59	68	69	70	66	64

Percentage of cases adjudicated delinquent resulting in probation by race:

	White					Black
Year	All	Person	Property	Drugs	Public order	All	Person	Property	Drugs	Public order
1985	55%	55%	56%	62%	49%	58%	56%	60%	63%	54%
1986	55	56	57	60	48	57	55	59	55	54
1987	56	56	57	60	48	55	52	58	56	51
1988	55	55	57	58	48	55	52	57	54	53
1989	56	55	57	58	49	54	52	57	50	52
1990	57	56	58	59	51	55	53	58	51	53
1991	57	55	59	54	50	55	52	59	48	54
1992	56	55	58	55	50	55	53	57	49	54
1993	55	55	57	54	50	53	5