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David Troutman
Looking back at first juvenile court created in the United States, was authorized by the Illi-
nois Juvenile Court Act of 1899 and was founded in 1899 in Chicago (McCord Pg 157). The act
gave the court jurisdiction over the neglected, dependent and delinquent children that were under
the age of 16 (McCord Pg 157). This court was focused on rehabilitation rather than punishment
(McCord Pg 157). This act also required that juveniles be separated from adults if they were sen-
tenced to jail and that no child under the age of 12 be sent to jail (McCord Pg 157). Soon the idea
of the juvenile court would spread rapidly across the U.S and by 1925 a functioning juvenile
court existed in every state except for Maine and Wyoming (McCord Pg 157).
The goal of the juvenile justice system when it was created, is diverting young offenders
from the harsh punishments of criminal courts and encouraging rehabilitation based on the needs
of a specific juvenile individual (McCord Pg 154). When creating the system the system was to
differ from adult or criminal courts (McCord Pg 154). There are many ways why the juvenile
justice system differs from adult or criminal courts. One reason why the juvenile justice system
differs is that it focuses on the child or adolescent as a person in need of assistance, not on the
crime that they allegedly broke that brought him or her to court (McCord Pg 154). The proceed-
ings were also informal so that meant that the responsibility of discretion power was given to the
court judge (McCord Pg 154). The court judge was supposed to act in the best interests for that
certain juvenile (McCord Pg 154). Procedural safeguards that were available for adults, which
included the right to an attorney, the right to know the charges brought against one, the right to
trail by jury, and the right to confront one’s accuser, were thought unnecessary when the juvenile
justice system was first created in the U.S (McCord Pg 154). These juvenile court proceedings
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were closed to the public and also the criminal records of these juveniles were to remain confi-
dential so that it wouldn’t interfere with the child’s ability to be rehabilitated and reintegrated
back into society (McCord Pg 154). Instead of being charged with crimes they were charged with
delinquencies (McCord Pg 154). These juveniles were usually given the verdict of not guilty
which that meant that they weren’t sent to prison, but they were sent to training school or reform-
atory (McCord Pg 154).
Fast forward to the present juvenile justice has changed dramatically compared to when it
was first created. It has changed so much to the point where the juvenile justice system and adult
or criminal courts aren’t so different like they used to be. In fact because of the legal reforms and
policy changes that have taken place over time, the U.S created a get tough rubric in being more
aggressive with policing juveniles (McCord Pg 155). Due to the creation of these legal reforms
and policy changes it has made it easier or in some cases mandatory to treat juvenile who has
committed certain offenses as an adult x (McCord Pg 155). The decision making about where to
try a juvenile not only does the judge have the ability to decide but now prosecutors and state
legislatures have the ability to decide as well (McCord Pg 155). Other procedures that have
changed as well is the different sentencing options that can be given to juveniles and the criminal
records and proceedings of a juvenile is available for the public to see (McCord Pg 155). Going
back to the beginning when the juvenile justice system was first created no one under the age of
12 would be given punishments like jail time, but in the early 19th century that would change as
well. Currently in the current juvenile justice system children as young as age seven years old
can be tried in a criminal court (McCord Pg 157). And if they do get convicted of the crime that
they committed they can be sentenced to prison or even death (McCord Pg 157). Due to the
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changes of the of juvenile justice system during the Progressive Era reforms the United States
built a lot of special courts and incarceration facilities for juveniles (McCord Pg 157).
Looking at what the process of a juvenile going through court in New York is very similar to
what an adult goes through when they go through the court system. A juvenile delinquent classi-
fied in New York and very similar to how other states classify a juvenile delinquent as well, is a
person who falls anywhere between the age range of 7 to 16 who commits an act which would be
a “crime” if he/she were an adult and is then found to be in need of supervision, treatment or
confinement (New). All the cases of juvenile delinquency are heard in the family court (New).
In some cases a child who is 15, 14 even 13 who commit more serious crimes or violent acts may
be treated as adults. If they are found guilty why they are being tried as adult, the child is classi-
fied as a juvenile offender and is subject to more serious penalties than a juvenile delinquent
(New). A typical case in a family court is a prosecuting attorney from the New York City Law
Department are the ones that presents the juvenile delinquency case (New). It is also possible for
an Assistant District Attorney to present a cause usually involving juvenile offenders and in
some cases juvenile delinquency cases involving certain serious crimes (New). The prosecutor
will create a what is called a petition against the child which just means that it is a description of
the acts that he/she is accused of committing (New). The accused child in the case is referred to
as the “respondent and the victim in the case is referred as the “complainant” (New). After be-
ing arrested and held a child many be brought directly to Family Court by the police, or when the
court is not in session, may be held overnight in detention center until the next day in court
(New). Or there in the other cases when a child gets arrested they are released but given an “ap-
pearance ticket” directing him/her to appear in court on a certain date (New). When the child and
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their parent or guardian first arrive in court they are given a copy of the petition (New). Also an-
other thing to note is that it is mandatory for a child to have a lawyer representation him or her
(New). And if the parent or guardian of the child cannot afford to hire a lawyer, the court will as-
sign a lawyer to represent the child (New).
The trial of a juvenile delinquency case is called a “fact-finding hearing” (New). This jug
means that a fact-finding hearing is the same as what happens in a criminal trial but there is no
jury (New). Instead the judge determines whether the child committed the acts that were men-
tioned in the petition (New). Another type of hearing that is held in family courts are probable
cause hearings (New). These hearings are used when the court decides that the child must be
held in detention while waiting for the fact-finding hearing and that these probably cause hear-
ings determine whether there is good reason to hold the child in detention (New). And other
