The majority (61%) of adjudicated status offense cases in 1997 resulted in probation. In 14% of adjudicated cases, the youth was placed outside the home in a residential facility. In 23% of cases, other dispositions resulted (including restitution or fines, participation in some form of community service, or enrollment in a nonresidential treatment or counseling program). A higher proportion of status offense cases than delinquency cases received a disposition of "other," possibly reflecting the use of counseling and treatment referrals for status cases involving liquor law violations. In a small number of status offense cases (3%), the youth was adjudicated but was released without further sanctions or consequences.

Out-of-Home Placement. The dispositions used in adjudicated status offense cases varied according to the most serious offense involved in the case. Adjudicated cases involving charges of ungovernability or running away were the most likely to result in out-of-home placement in 1997 (table 58). Residential placement was far less common for adjudicated cases involving status liquor law violations or truancy. The likelihood of out-of-home placement for status offense cases in general decreased between 1988 and 1997 (from 17% to 14%). This drop stemmed from declines in the use of placement for ungovernable and miscellaneous cases.

Despite the drop in the overall proportion of adjudicated cases resulting in out-of-home placement, the number of adjudicated status offense cases that resulted in out-of-home placement increased 34% between 1988 and 1997 (table 59). The number of adjudicated status cases resulting in out-of-home placement increased for all offense categories since 1988.

Of all formally handled status offense cases involving out-of-home placement in 1997, 24% were referred to court for ungovernability, 23% for truancy, 22% for running away, and 13% for status liquor law violations (table 60).

Formal Probation. An order of formal probation was most likely in adjudicated truancy cases (74%) in 1997 (table 61). Probation orders were less common among ungovernability cases (63%), liquor law violations (63%), and runaway cases (58%). Overall, the proportion of adjudicated status offense cases that resulted in formal probation has remained about the same between 1988 and 1997. There was considerable variation, however, across offense categories.

Although the proportion of adjudicated cases ordered to probation was about the same in 1997 as in 1988, the number of cases increased 63% (table 62). Of the four general offense categories, liquor law violations accounted for the largest share of this increase. The number of formal probation cases increased 60% for liquor law cases, 56% for truancy cases, 44% for ungovernability cases, and 35% for runaway cases.

Although the 1997 offense profile for formal probation was similar to the 1988 profile, there were smaller proportions of the four main status offense categories resulting in formal probation in 1997 than in 1988. In 1997, 35% of the adjudicated status offense cases that resulted in probation involved truancy as the most serious charge, 27% involved liquor law violations, 15% involved ungovernability, and 11% involved running away (table 63).