Juvenile Justice System Essay Example

requested a fitness hearing to determine if his case could be tried in an adult court. Investigations showed that although involved in the attack, Jose had a lesser role compared to his teenage friends. Furthermore, his intoxication before the incident played a part in the prosecutors offering him a deal.

Jose was originally going to be sent to the adult court and pleaded guilty for his level of involvement in the assault. However, he ended up being transferred to the California Youth Authority instead for a psychological assessment. The assessment determined that as long as Jose stayed sober, he would not be a danger to society. Following the judicial process and assessment, the judge in charge found Jose guilty and ordered him to be confined.

The California youth authority law offers various sentencing options for delinquent juveniles, which can be categorized as either incarceration or non-incarceration. If a juvenile is found guilty after an adjudication hearing, the court has the option to impose imprisonment as a punishment (Clarke, 1996). Nevertheless, the methods employed for confining juveniles differ from those used for adult criminals. Juvenile judges have the authority to order home confinement or house arrest as a form of detention. This entails minors being obligated to remain at their residence unless they are attending school, receiving counseling, working, or engaging in any other approved activity.

The Presiding Judge has the power to assign a minor to someone other than their parent or guardian. They can also send the minor to a juvenile hall or detention center temporarily. After their stay in the juvenile facility, some minors may be placed on probation. In specific areas, judges can transfer juveniles

from juvenile facilities to adult facilities when they become adults.

If a juvenile is found delinquent, judges have the power to impose various alternatives to incarceration. These options include issuing a verbal warning, where the judge rebukes the minor for their law-breaking behavior. Furthermore, judges can mandate counseling sessions or community service for a designated number of hours. Another possibility is imposing a fine sentence, in which the judge can instruct the minor to pay a fine to the state or provide compensation to the victim.

Electronic monitoring is the final order that a court may impose on a minor, whereby the juvenile wears a device to continuously track their location. The first encounter of a youth with the juvenile justice system happens when they are arrested by law enforcement. In Jose's case, an on-duty law enforcement officer brought him into the system on a specific date. After the arrest, a determination is made whether to detain and charge the minor or release them. This decision relies on information provided by crime victims, Jose's parents, Jose himself, and any previous records in the juvenile system associated with the victim. Initially, as per the judge's ruling, Jose was held in a detention hall for juveniles while awaiting trial.

Schmalleger (2009) states that typically, a detention hearing occurs within 24 hours of an arrest. In Jose's case, he waited for his adjudication hearing while being detained for 24 hours. Once the judge made a final ruling, Jose, as a juvenile sentenced to jail, was placed in either a secure juvenile hall or a juvenile detention facility (Pope & Feyerherm, 1995). Jose spent 208 days in a juvenile detention facility. The

goal of the juvenile justice system is not punishment but rather rehabilitating minors for their future adult lives. After completing the 208-day detention period, Jose has shown responsibility and had his juvenile records sealed. It is important to mention that the juvenile court system provides additional protections for minors that are not present in the adult court system.

Tinkler (1992) argues that sealing the records of young offenders aims to shield their past crimes from negatively impacting their future lives. He illustrates this with a personal experience in a juvenile detention facility. In the United States, the juvenile justice system prioritizes rehabilitating minors instead of punishing them, seeking to help them become responsible individuals. This objective is particularly crucial during ages ten to eighteen when teenagers undergo physical changes and develop curiosity about new experiences. Given Jose's age of 15 at the time, peer pressure likely influenced his involvement in the incident during his adolescence.

In my capacity as the overseeing judge, I had the choice to enforce both house arrest and counseling for Jose. It is important to acknowledge that Jose grew up without a nurturing environment and may have lacked proper guidance. It is not uncommon for young individuals to be influenced by their peers or face difficulties during adolescence, causing them to partake in actions that were unintentional or impulsive.