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Juvenile Justice Process
In most cases, when a juvenile is accused of a crime, the justice process proceeds differently from the usual criminal justice process. The approach to juvenile crime is that juveniles do not commit crimes; they commit acts of delinquency that require state intervention to correct.
Juvenile courts typically handle cases involving children from ages 10 to 18. However, in cases of extremely serious or violent crimes, such as murder or rape, the prosecutor may choose to try the juvenile as an adult in the ordinary criminal justice process. There is a trend in many states to lower the age at which a juvenile may be tried as an adult and be subject to adult punishment. In some states, the process is reversed and a juvenile accused of a serious crime is automatically charged in adult court, with the judge having the discretion to transfer the case to a juvenile court.
Juveniles have different rights than adults, too. They don't have the right to a trial by jury. If a juvenile commits a very serious offense, such as murder or rape, the District Attorney, with the judge's permission, may decide to try the offender as an adult. The minimum age for a juvenile to be tried as an adult is differs from state to state, but can be as young as fourteen.
Consult an attorney in your area for more information regarding juvenile criminal process.
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