In 1997, U.S. juvenile courts handled an estimated 390,800 delinquency cases in which the most serious charge was an offense against a person. Person offenses include assault, robbery, rape, and homicide. The 1997 person offense caseload was 97 percent greater than in 1988. Person offense cases accounted for 22 percent of delinquency cases in 1997, compared with 17 percent in 1988. Compared with 1988, juveniles involved in person offense cases in 1997 were younger and more likely to be female. Regarding case processing, of the 390,800 person offenses cases disposed by U.S. juvenile courts in 1997, 58 percent were handled formally. Of the individuals involved in petitioned cases, 3,300 were waived to the criminal court system, more than half (55 percent or 125,500) were formally adjudicated as delinquents in the juvenile court, and 44 percent (99,400) were petitioned but not adjudicated delinquent. In 30 percent of the 125,500 person offense cases that were formally adjudicated by juvenile courts in 1997, the most severe disposition imposed by the court was placement out of the home in a residential facility. Probation was ordered in 56 percent (70,800) of the cases, and 9 percent (11,700) resulted in other sanctions, including referral to an outside agency, fines, community service, and restitution. 2 tables and 1 figure