Juvenile Justice



Juvenile Justice

Introduction

The juvenile and the adult criminal justice system is similar, as well as, very different in a variety of ways. The juvenile justice system is meant to provide justice to the people who do not currently qualify as the adults. The juvenile justice system also tries the juveniles in special courts. On the other hand, there is another adult criminal justice system that provides justice to adults, as well as, tries them in adult criminal justice courts. In defining the differences between the juvenile and the adult criminal justice system, it is important to first understand that who is considered a juvenile and who is an adult. In most of the countries and in most of the states of the United States of America, a person who is in between the age of ten years and eighteen years is considered a juvenile and the juvenile laws are applicable on him. If he commits a crime, he would be tried not in a normal criminal justice court, but in a juvenile court (Bartollas & Miller, 2008). Any person who is over this limit of age that is defined by the states is considered an adult and would be tried in an adult court if he commits a crime. Furthermore, in the cases in which the senior juveniles commit a crime that is very serious and violent, he may be tried in adult courts just as the adults and their status of being a juvenile would not be considered in such circumstances (Schmalleger, 2008). The courts also use different terms for the issues related to the juveniles. The crimes that the juveniles commit are not called crimes but they are instead called delinquent acts. The juvenile offenders do not have trials but they have adjudication hearings. The further differences between the juvenile criminal justice system and the adult criminal justice system will be described in the paper.

Discussion

There are many differences between the juvenile criminal justice system and the adult criminal justice system. The juveniles do to have an access to many constitutional rights that the adults would have. They also do not have the right to a trial by their peers and their jury, therefore, they juvenile hearings or adjudications are heard by judges. The juveniles also do not enjoy the rights of a public trial or the right to bail. Nevertheless, the juveniles also enjoy some extra protection that the adult criminals would not have. The records of the juvenile offenders are sealed and they can lead a normal life because of this. The criminal record would not haunt them for the rest of their lives. When a juvenile turns to the age of eighteen years, all of his criminal records are erased if the juvenile has met certain pre described conditions and he can then lead a normal life as an adult. The public access to the juvenile records is limited in the case of the criminal justice system for the juveniles (Lerner, Wiatrowski & Pritchard, ...