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Juvenile Courts

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Submitted By bigdaddyc1968
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CheckPoint: Juvenile Court Process
The first encounter a youth has with the juvenile justice system is usually his or her arrest by a law enforcement official. Other ways that youth enter the system include "referrals" by parents and schools, delinquency victims, and probation officers. A decision is usually made after arrest as to whether a youth should be detained and charged, released, or transferred into another youth welfare program. When a juvenile court case reaches the juvenile probation department, an intake officer will decide whether to dismiss it, handle it informally, or hear it formally. To make this decision the officer reviews the facts surrounding the case to decide if there is enough information to try the youth. If the court has received adequate evidence to hear the case, a decision will be made as to whether the juvenile case should be heard formally or informally.
Approximately 50 percent of all juvenile justice cases are heard informally, and among these, most are dismissed. Cases receive an "informal disposition" by a judge when a youth admits guilt and agrees to settle the charges by meeting the requirements of the court, which are laid out in a "consent decree." Among these requirements may be:
• Restitution - juvenile is required to reimburse the victim or pay a fine to the community for damages he has caused.
• Mandatory curfew - juvenile is subject to a strict curfew.
• School attendance - juvenile is required to attend school regularly.
• Rehabilitation - juvenile is required to participate in drug or other rehabilitation programs.

If, upon assessment of a juvenile's case, a formal hearing is deemed necessary, an initial decision must be made as to how the case will be heard. In many states, specified cases may be heard in either juvenile or criminal court.
I feel that in most cases the guidelines in juvenile court are fair. In

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