U.S. Department of Justice

Office of Justice Programs

Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention 

September 2001 #34

Probation can be court ordered or voluntary

Some youth are ordered to probation after being adjudicated

delinquent (analogous to being convicted in criminal court). In

contrast to court-ordered probation, some youth who are not

adjudicated delinquent voluntarily agree to abide by certain probation conditions, often with the understanding that if they successfully complete their probationary period, their case will be

terminated without any formal processing. 

In 1998, adjudicated delinquents ordered to probation (366,100

cases) accounted for more than half (55%) of all delinquency

cases placed on probation. In the remaining delinquency cases

(45%), the youth agreed to some form of voluntary, or informal,

probation. The number of adjudicated cases that resulted in courtordered probation rose 73% from 1989 through 1998. In comparison, the number of cases that resulted in informal probation

increased 40%, reflecting the trend toward more formal processing of delinquency cases.

The demographic profile of probation cases changed

little since 1989

In 1998, 69% of cases placed on probation involved white juveniles, 28% involved black juveniles, and 3% involved juveniles of

other races. Between 1989 and 1998, the probation caseload grew

57% for black juveniles (from 119,800 to 187,500) and 56% for

white juveniles (from 293,600 to 458,400). Most cases (76%)

Juvenile Delinquency Probation

Caseload, 1989–1998

by Meghan C. Black

More than one-third of delinquency cases resulted

in probation in 1998

Courts with juvenile jurisdiction handled nearly 1.8 million

delinquency cases in 1998. Probation supervision was the most

severe disposition in about 38% (665,500) of all delinquency

cases. The number of cases placed on probation grew 56%

between 1989 and 1998. During that time, the overall delinquency caseload increased 44%. These findings are based on national

data on delinquency cases processed by juvenile courts from

1989 through 1998. The national estimates were generated using

information contributed to the National Juvenile Court Data

Archive. The analysis is based on data from nearly 2,100 jurisdictions containing almost 70% of the U.S. juvenile population

(youth age 10 through the upper age of original juvenile court

jurisdiction in each State). 

Probation was the most likely disposition for cases in

which the juvenile was adjudicated delinquent

Most Severe Disposition 1989 1994 1998

Total 100% 100% 100%

Probation 55 53 58

Residential placement 31 28 26

Other sanction 10 13 11

Released without additional sanction 4 5 5

Note: Detail may not add to 100% because of rounding.

0

100,000

200,000

300,000

400,000

500,000

600,000

700,000

1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998

Other sanction

Probation

Residential placement

Waived to criminal court

Number of delinquency cases disposed

Probation was ordered in 58% of the more than 1 million

cases that received a juvenile court sanction

Probation cases accounted for 59% of the increase in delinquency

cases that received a juvenile court sanction (those that were not

dismissed or otherwise released).
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PERMIT NO. G–91

FS–200134 Fact Sheet

U.S. Department of Justice

Office of Justice Programs

Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention

Washington, DC 20531

Official Business

Penalty for Private Use $300

placed on probation in 1998 involved males (about 503,400

cases). However, the female share of the probation caseload has

grown in the last decade—from 18% in 1989 to 24% in 1998.

Juveniles who were 14 to 16 years old accounted for 62% (about

410,600 cases) of the probation caseload in 1998, up slightly

from 61% in 1989. 

Property offense cases made up the greatest

proportion of the probation caseload

The offense profile of the probation caseload has changed somewhat since 1989. Property offense cases continued to account for

the majority of cases placed on probation, but their share of the

probation caseload declined. For example, the proportion of adjudicated cases that involved property offenses and received formal

probation as the most severe disposition declined 14 percentage

points between 1989 and 1998 (from 59% to 45%). As a result,

the profile of the formal probation caseload contained greater

proportions of person, drug, and public order offense cases in

1998 than in 1989. 

For further information

This Fact Sheet is based on the forthcoming Report Juvenile

Court Statistics 1998, which will be available on OJJDP’s Web

site (ojjdp.ncjrs.org). To learn more about juvenile court cases,

visit OJJDP’s Statistical Briefing Book (ojjdp.ncjrs.org/

ojstatbb/index.html) and click on “Juveniles in court.” OJJDP

also supports Easy Access to Juvenile Court Statistics, a Webbased application that analyzes the data files used for the

Juvenile Court Statistics Report. This application is available

from the Statistical Briefing Book.

Meghan C. Black, Esq., is a Research Assistant with the National

Juvenile Court Data Archive, which is supported by an OJJDP grant.

The Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention is a component

of the Office of Justice Programs, which also includes the Bureau of Justice

Assistance, the Bureau of Justice Statistics, the National Institute of Justice,

and the Office for Victims of Crime.

FS–200134

Offense profile of cases in which the juvenile was

adjudicated delinquent and placed on probation

Most Serious Offense 1989 1994 1998

Total 100% 100% 100%

Person 17 22 23

Property 59 51 45

Drugs 8 9 12

Public order 16 19 21

Note: Detail may not add to 100% because of rounding.

Across offenses, the likelihood of probation for cases in

which the juvenile was adjudicated delinquent increased

since 1994

Most Serious Offense 1989 1994 1998

Total 55% 53% 58%

Person 54 53 58

Property 57 55 59

Drugs 54 51 59

Public order 50 50 54

Note: Detail may not add to 100% because of rounding.