Describe the process followed as a juvenile moves through the juvenile justice system and compare it to the adult criminal system

Question

What will be an ideal response?

Answer 1

• As with adults, juveniles begin their entry into the justice system with a contact with law enforcement. Once a juvenile comes in contact with the police, he or she may be detained for a short time to contact a parent or guardian or while awaiting transfer to a juvenile facility. The next step in the juvenile justice process is intake, carried out by the juvenile probation department or prosecutor's office to determine whether the case should be dismissed, handled informally, or referred to the juvenile court. At this point, approximately 40 percent of cases are diverted, dismissed, or otherwise handled informally; the other 60 percent continue in a formal manner. With informal handling, the case is often concluded with a consent decree, whereby the delinquent juvenile must admit to wrongdoing and agree to specific conditions of behavior (similar to pretrial diversion for adult offenders). This stage is sometimes referred to as informal probation. If the juvenile meets all the conditions of the consent decree, the case is dismissed and there is no formal record of delinquent action. If during intake the determination is to handle the case formally, or the case was originally handled informally and the juvenile does not meet the consent decree conditions, it will be formally handled and a referral will be made to the juvenile court. The referral is similar to charging an adult offender with a crime. In the referral, a delinquency petition (similar to an indictment for adults) states the delinquent acts the juvenile is alleged to have committed and asks the juvenile court to adjudicate (or find the juvenile guilty of the delinquent act) and make the juvenile a ward of the court. A hearing is then scheduled, facts are presented, witnesses may be called, and the court determines whether the juvenile is responsible for the delinquent act. If the juvenile is found responsible for the delinquent act, the judge must determine what sanction or order (similar to the sentence for an adult) should apply.