The Juvenile Justice Process

San Jose Juvenile Justice Lawyer And Santa Clara Juvenile Violence Attorney

Juvenile court proceedings handle minors who are alleged to have committed offenses that, were they adults, would constitute crimes. The juvenile justice system also handles status offenses, which are acts that are offenses only because of the age of the perpetrator, e.g., purchasing alcohol.

Arrest

The first step in a juvenile proceeding is the arrest. If the offense is not serious, the officer may release the juvenile with a warning. Police officers may also give citations to appear in court at a later date, but allow the minor to return home for the time being. For serious offenses, the officer may take the minor into custody at juvenile hall.

Juvenile Hall

At juvenile hall, the probation officer interviews the child and decides whether formal proceedings should be filed against the minor. If there are sufficient grounds to believe that the juvenile committed the offense, a delinquency petition will be filed. The probation officer may, instead of filing a petition, send the minor home and place him or her on probation for six months. If the minor complies with the probation requirements, the case will be dismissed.

Detention Hearing

If a petition is filed, the next step is the detention hearing. At the hearing, the probation officer decides whether the juvenile must stay in custody until the case is resolved. The probation officer may:

• Send the minor home with a citation to later return to court;
• Put the minor in a non-secure detention facility; or
• Keep the minor in custody at juvenile hall.

Fitness Hearing

In some cases, there will be a fitness hearing to decide whether the case should be resolved in juvenile court or be transferred to adult criminal court. If it is transferred to criminal court, the case is no longer involved with the juvenile justice process. Otherwise, proceedings will continue in the juvenile court system.

Initial Hearing

At the initial court hearing, the charges are read, and the juvenile either admits or denies them. If the minor cannot afford an attorney, the court will appoint one for him or her. At this point, the court may also refer the case to informal supervision instead of continuing with the formal prosecution.

Adjudication

Adjudication, known in California as the jurisdictional hearing, is the equivalent of a trial. Jurisdictional hearings are conducted in front of a judge, not a jury. The prosecution must prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the child committed the offense. This is the same standard as in criminal court.

Disposition Hearing

If the minor is adjudicated delinquent, the judge will pronounce sentence at the disposition hearing. The sentencing options are quite broad for juveniles. The minor may be released on probation or committed to some type of institutional custody, such as juvenile hall, or may be placed out of the home, for example, in foster care, a group home, or a treatment facility. For serious offenses, the minor may be confined in a Division of Juvenile Justice institution, which is a locked facility.

It is beneficial to have an experienced lawyer to represent your child at every stage of the juvenile justice process. If your child has gotten in trouble with the law, please contact passionate San Jose criminal defense attorney Wesley Schroeder for a free initial consultation.

Sources:

http://www.courts.ca.gov/documents/Flow_Chart_Delinquency-FINAL.pdf

http://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displayText.xhtml?lawCode=WIC&division=2.&title=&part=1.&chapter=2.&article=16