This report -- the first in a series of reports to be published annually -- examines trends in the number of convictions and in sentencing from 1981 to 1990. Offending trends are addressed for offending overall, for offenses categorized into groups, and for some selected individual offenses. The offense groups are violent offenses, other offenses against the person, property offenses, drug offenses, offenses against good order, offenses against the administration of justice, and other offenses not otherwise classified. Traffic offenses are considered separately. The overall number of prosecutions for nontraffic offenses remained stable between 1986 and 1989 but dropped by 11 percent between 1989 and 1990. Over this period, approximately 70 percent of all charges that involved nontraffic offenses resulted in a conviction each year. The use of custodial sentences and community-based sentences (particularly periodic detention) increased over the 10-year period; there was a decreasing use of monetary penalties. Traffic offenses comprised the largest single category of convictions for each year between 1981 and 1990, but the decriminalization of some minor traffic offenses precluded a comparison of the number of traffic convictions in each year. 68 tables and 5 figures