Juvenile justice and adults court systems - Free Essay Example

The juvenile system was created about a century ago to prevent adolescents from harsh punishment. To instead have them rehabilitated depending on their needs or act committed. The way the juvenile justice system works is young violators enter the juvenile justice system by law enforcement. Their processing laws are different and they vary from state to state also community to community. During the time of being arrested they decide to either process them into the system or choose an alternative. The decision depends on the outcome after talking to everyone in the situation such as the victim and the juvenile etc. also by looking at prior behavior. Juvenile court cases can be referred too. Either generally by law enforcements but can also be made by others. For example a probation officer, victims, and schools. The court is the responsibility of the juvenile probation department. Officers called the intake officer review the cases and see if there is evidence to support the allegations made. If there is no proof behind the allegations then the case is dismissed. If there is evidence to support the allegations then they will figure out which invention is the best the time. This invention can be anything from victim restitution to probation. After all the processing then the prosecutor will decide to file with the juvenile or criminal court. More serious crimes involving juveniles will most likely be handled in criminal court as a criminal offender. Less offenses will be passed to juvenile court. Since juveniles are considered to be rehabilitated instead of punished more suitable dispositions for juveniles can vary depending on the case. One can be victim or community restitution which is the restoration of something lost or stolen. It can also mean to be compensated or reimbursed. Another disposition would be juvenile aftercare in other words parole. This all is depending on the different cases and offense of the delinquent. While processing the case the must make sure that the juvenile is held in a secured facility. A juvenile can be held if the courts believe that this is the best option during the time. If arrested they discourage holding adolescents with adults. Due to federal regulations if they have to detain a juvenile for any reason, it has to be in a secure area with no adults inmates insight or sound and cannot be longer than 6 hours. There ought to be two separate distinct systems. Children and teens should not be join with adults. One reason for my opinion is that juveniles and adults should be treat differently. Most juvenile arrests are nonviolent or are not equivalent to adult defined crimes. Another reason is for safety precautions. Adolescents are often considered fragile and most likely cant protect theirselves from people much older than them. Adults are bigger and a lot more intimidating. Since that is the case it is easy for adolescents to get bullied and beaten. Juveniles also need to be treated differently because they are still children. Children shouldnt be subjected to the behavior of adults or the harsh treatment that adult inmates get. The big difference between juvenile and adults is their age difference. There are and should be different consequences for juveniles. In most cases juveniles are sent to rehab for committing a crime and adults are sent to jail. Juveniles are usually sent to be rehabilitated so they wont commit the same crime again. For adults being charged with a crime they are punished not rehabilitated in most cases. Adults have a public trail by a jury, while juveniles necessarily dont. Having a separate juvenile justice system is the best way to keep order. It also helps to keep younger delinquents safe by separating them from adult criminals The juvenile system is not just for punishing a delinquent or rehabilitation it can also serve as helping juveniles that are victims. Just like there is a system that handles juvenile offenders, there is a juvenile victim justice system that is controlled by the state. It also differs from community to community and state to state just like for juvenile offenders. The juvenile victim justice system works with professionals that specialize in the particular area of the different crimes. Crimes committed against juveniles are as serious as adults that are involved in a crime. These young victims are given the same time and resources as if they were offenders. Most juvenile victims are involved in crimes such as child abuse and child neglect. A more common crime that is increasing against juveniles is child abduction and sexual assault. Children and teens are more victimize than adults. Especially in crimes like rape, kidnap, and abuse. Crimes against juveniles arent taking lightly and the criminal justice system are supposed to put all there energy and resources into these cases to help the young victims. Also in most juvenile cases the victims tend to know their offenders. Going back to the question Should we have a separate juvenile justice system? Yes! There absolutely should be a different system for juveniles. Mainly because these cases are different than adults crime or victims. They need to be look at from a different point of view not just that, they also need to be handled differently than adults. Another reason behind my opinion is that some juveniles are not old enough to be held accountable for most of these criminal acts. Usually the age is 18 for criminal culpability. The brain of an adolescent does not process emotions and the meaning of consequences like an adult. Also rehabilitation gives them a better chance of not committing the same offense again than just locking them up. Juvenile offenders also need to be protected and separate from adults offenders to prevent them from physical and sexual abuse.