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Youth Court Building in Camberwell

A juvenile court (or young offender's court) is a tribunal having special authority to pass judgments for crimes that are committed by children or adolescents who have not attained the age of majority. In most modern legal systems, children and adolescents who commit a crime are treated differently from legal adults that have committed the same crime.

Industrialized countries differ in whether juveniles should be tried as adults for serious crimes or considered separately. Since the 1970s, minors have been tried increasingly as adults in response to "increases in violent juvenile crime." Young offenders may still not be prosecuted as adults. Serious offenses, such as murder or rape, can be prosecuted through adult court in England.^[2] However, as of 2007, no United States data reported any exact numbers of juvenile offenders prosecuted as adults.^[1]  In contrast, countries such as Australia and Japan are in the early stages of developing and implementing youth focused justice initiatives as a deferment from adult court.

Globally, the United Nations' has encouraged nations to reform their systems to fit with a model in which "entire society [must] ensure the harmonious development of adolescence" despite the delinquent behavior that may be causing issues. The hope was to create a more "child friendly justice." Despite all the changes made by the United Nations, the rules in practice are less clear cut. Changes in a broad context cause issues of implementation locally, and international crimes committed by youth are causing additional questions regarding the benefit of separate proceedings for juveniles.

Issues of juvenile justice have become increasingly global across several cultural contexts. As globalization has occurred in recent centuries, issues of justice, and more specifically protecting the rights of children as it relates to juvenile courts, have been called to question. Global policies regarding this issue have become more widely accepted, and a general culture of treatment of children offenders has adapted to this trend.

Models

Juvenile court is a special court or department of a trial court that deals with under-age defendants who are charged with crimes, are neglected, or are out of the control of their parents. The normal age of these defendants is under 18, but the age of majority changes based on the state or nation. Juvenile court does not have jurisdiction in cases in which minors are charged as adults. The procedure in juvenile court is not always adversarial, although the minor is entitled to legal representation by a lawyer. Parents or social workers and probation officers may be involved in the process to achieve positive results and save the minor from involvement in future crimes. However, serious crimes and repeated offenses can result in sentencing juvenile offenders to prison, with transfer to state prison upon reaching adulthood with limited maximum sentences, often until the age of 18, 21, 23 or 25. Where parental neglect or loss of control is a problem, the juvenile court may seek out foster homes for the juvenile, treating the child as a ward of the court. A juvenile court handles cases of both delinquency and dependency.  Delinquency refers to crimes committed by minors, and dependency includes cases where a non-parental person is chosen to care for a minor.

Restorative Justice Model

When looking at juvenile justice as a whole there are two types of models that tend to be used: restorative justice and criminal justice. Within the United States, there are systematic shifts towards a more restorative model of justice especially surrounding juveniles. Canada has long been practicing under a restorative model of justice and continues to grow and expand upon practices of integrating youth offenders into the community in hopes that they do not recidivate but become positive, contributing members of society. In addition to these countries, Austria has taken initiative to implement victim-offender mediation programs geared towards a more restorative form of justice. New Zealand completely restructured their system with an emphasis on what the indigenous people, Māori, practiced for many years. This includes a family centered focus that lowers youth incarceration. Globally, there is a trend of utilizing the traditional values of past generations to create a positive impact throughout juvenile court systems.

Reform

See also: School-to-prison pipeline, Restorative justice

In his 1997 book No Matter How Loud I Shout, a study of the Los Angeles' Juvenile Courts, Edward Humes argued that juvenile court systems is in need of a revolutionary reform. He stated that the system sends too many children with good chances of rehabilitation to adult court, while pushing aside and acquitting children early on the road to crime instead of giving counseling, support, and accountability. 57% of children arrested for the first time are never arrested again, 27% are arrested one or two more times, and 16% commit four or more crimes. He used this as an argument for more juvenile courts and less deferment to adult court.

The construction of youth and being young is morphing and, as such, people believe the legal system should reflect these changes. Childhood and the concept of youth, look very different and is socially constructed in a much different pattern than in past historical context. Some argue that within our current social climate, a juvenile court system and having a separate deferment for people under the age of majority needs changes as there are such blurred lines between the stages of childhood, youth, and young adulthood in present day.

On a global scale, the United Nations has implemented reforms as it relating to juvenile courts and juvenile justice as a whole. Rules and regulations have been implemented to protect the children's rights, more specifically creating guidelines for punishment. Movements towards less punitive measures or agencies has been a trend in this regard. For example, in the United Nations general assembly, there was a proposal that "no child or young person should be subjected to harsh or degrading correction or punishment measures." Many Western countries have been condemned for not put these policies into practice nor differentiate the youths from adults in procedure or punishment. The United Nations believes that youths should have less harsh punishment and be deferred to more community supportive programs like tribunals or courts geared towards young people. In Western Europe, there are many countries also criticized and looked at by the United Nations for the disproportionate representation of racial and ethnic minorities in the juvenile court system of racial and ethnic minority being over represented.

The current system allows for many systemic perpetuation of class divides, discrimination and gender inequalities. Another reform made by the United Nations is "informalism" in the mid-1900s where a push for diversion and less criminalizing happened. This is when many deferred programs and alternatives to formal criminal and adult jurisdictions changed, making it more child friendly. In more recent years, the restorative justice model has been promoted as a better way to process and reintegrate youth who are involved in the court system back into the community. This model is multifaceted and involves a change in the cultural understanding of what it means to commit a crime as a person under the age of majority. The United Nations has offered aid to countries looking to move towards a restorative justice model as it is a positive change in from a human rights discourse. Difficulty in implementing restorative justice comes with cultural differences cross nationally as well as the scope and breadth of the model. Additionally, the traditional values of adversarial justice have been rooted in the juvenile system for a very long time, which makes it difficult implement change on a global scale. Overall, the United Nation's attempts for changing the conversation and structure surrounding juvenile courts, have made small strides as many other issues continually being addressed.

There are also many arguments against the globalization of the reforms of juvenile court systems. Global juvenile justice lack solutions to the flaws that come out of placing them in such a wide array of social contexts. For example, the case study of Moroccan youth as well as other ethnic minorities or migrant groups living within the Netherlands. There is a disconnect between the idea that crime is a local social problem, but there are movements to solve the problems more generically and on a much broader spectrum. In the Netherlands, the emphasis of juvenile court is rehabilitation despite the reality being a more punitive focused system when placed in practice. Juvenile courts cause further system bias and exclusion for these minority groups and the disparity is cause for concern. One reason for this problem is the public discourse and police scrutiny--all of which stem from the failed cultural integration. Globalization of youth justice and court then perpetuates this idea of an "international scapegoat" and causes issues that need more careful consideration for the putting global practices to work in local communities. As some scholars argue, globalization does not simplify the problem but rather complicates it as it challenges "traditional modes of analysis" and creates problems of identity.

International human rights tribunals

Further information: Military use of children § war crimes

In an era where crimes against the state, in violation with international law are prosecuted, children who are subjected to this crime are now being called into question on how to deal with them. More specifically this problem applies to children soldiers. Controversy has risen in regards to starting a special juvenile court or 'special court' for children being prosecuted for international crimes. In Sierra Leone , for example, people wanted the perpetrators to be held fully responsible despite age or social context. When a juvenile is deferred to the special court, their treatment would be treated with more respect as well as a promotion of rehabilitation and reintegration, taking into account how young many of the child soldiers were. The Secretary General termed the use of the tribunals as a "moral dilemma." The children who become soldiers often do so as a result of a structural or systemic threat in their lives; however, they still are responsible for many violent and heinous acts. In this way they are both victims of regimes and guilty parties, causing the problem and dilemma that the United Nations has tried to address in Sierra Leone as well as other countries.

United States

See also: Youth incarceration in the United States

In all but four states (Massachusetts, Nebraska, New Mexico, and New York), anyone charged with committing a criminal act before his or her seventeenth or eighteenth birthday is initially processed as a juvenile defendant. In New York and North Carolina the minimum age at which all accused persons are charged as adults is 13. In Michigan, Texas and eight others the minimum age is 17. In other states, such as Washington, the minimum age depends on the severity of the crime. In the United States the juvenile court system can include more than just criminal offenses. In some jurisdictions, in addition to delinquent cases, juvenile court hears cases involving child custody, child support and visitation as well as cases where children are alleged to be neglected. Both the minimum ages and the scope of what the juvenile court handles varies greatly from state to state.

In Kent v. United States (1966), the United States Supreme Court held that a juvenile must be afforded due process rights, specifically that a waiver of jurisdiction from a juvenile court to a district court must be voluntary and knowing. The U.S. Supreme Court held, in 1967, that children accused in a juvenile delinquency proceeding have the rights to due process, counsel, and against self-incrimination, essentially the Miranda rights. Writing for the majority, Associate Justice Abe Fortas wrote, "Under our Constitution, the condition of being a boy does not justify a kangaroo court." However, most juvenile proceedings are held without a jury as McKeiver v. Pennsylvania (1971) decided that minors do not have the same rights in this regard as adults.

Age of criminal responsibility

There is no uniform national age from which a child is accountable in the juvenile court system; this varies between states, with many setting 10 as the minimum. Not all minors who commit a crime are committed to juvenile (or adult) court. A police officer has three choices:

1. Detain and warn the minor against further violations, and then let the minor go free
2. Detain and warn the minor against further violations, but hold the minor until a parent or guardian comes for the minor
3. Place the minor in custody and refer the case to an officer

Avoiding formal charges

In an American juvenile court, it is possible to avoid placing formal charges. FindLaw lists seven official factors that can help formal charges be avoided: In Connecticut, a referral can be made to a non-court associated committee referred to as a Juvenile Review Board. These boards can present a resolution that does not result in a juvenile criminal record. However, there are circumstances such as the types of cases the board will accept.

1. The severity of the offense. A serious crime is more likely to result in the filing of a petition than a less serious crime.
2. The minor's age. Petitions are more likely to be filed in cases involving older children.
3. The minor's past record. Formal charges are more likely when a minor has been previously involved with juvenile court.
4. The strength of the evidence that the minor committed a crime. Obviously, stronger evidence leads to a greater likelihood of formal charges.
5. The minor's sex. Formal charges are more likely to be filed against boys than against girls.
6. The minor's social history. Petitions are more likely to be filed when children have a history of problems at home or at school.
7. The parent's or guardian's apparent ability to control the minor. The greater the lack of parental control, the more likely the intake officer is to file a petition.

Along with these seven, four "unofficial" factors can sway an official:

1. The minor's attitude. Formal proceedings are less likely when a child shows remorse for committing a crime.
2. The minor's appearance. If the young person dresses well, is neatly groomed and is polite, intake personnel are more likely to handle the case informally.
3. Whether the minor has family or community support. The more support the young person has, the more likely the intake officer is to deal with the case informally.
4. Whether the minor has an attorney. Disposing of a case informally may be less likely when a child has a lawyer.

Other Cases

In some jurisdictions, in addition to delinquent cases, juvenile court hears cases involving child custody, child support and visitation as well as cases where children are alleged to be neglected.

See also

• American juvenile justice system
• Gender responsive approach for girls in the juvenile justice system
• Girl's court
• The Juvenile Court in Hong Kong

External links

• Information about Juvenile Justice from the Penal Reform International website.
• National Juvenile Defender Center
• Juveniles involved in the Justice System a review of the juvenile justice system in the United States, comparing it to Canada.
• Violent Justice: Adult system fails young offenders
• Prevent Delinquency Project

References

Court