ASSIGNMENT

OF

CRIMINOLOGY, PENOLOGY

&

VICTIMOLOGY

TOPIC- JUVENILE COURT

SUBMITTED BY-

POOJA YADAV

LLB 4TH SEM

SECTION - C

ROLL NO- 861

 JUVENILE COURT

A juvenile court (or young offender's court) is a tribunal having special

authority to pass judgements for crimes that are committed by children or
adolescents who have not attained the age of majority. In most modern legal
systems, children or teens who commit a crime are treated differently from legal
adults that have committed the same offense.

It is a court where kids under 18 are tried and sentenced for criminal behavior,
provided that behavior doesn't warrant trying as an adult (such as homicide).
Typical offenses include underage drinking and possession of marijuana.
Sentencing often includes community service, or some length of time in a
juvenile detention facility.

Industrialized countries differ in whether juveniles should be tried as adults for

serious crimes or considered separately. Since the 1970s, minors have been tried
increasingly as adults in response to "increases in violent juvenile crime." Young
offenders may still not be prosecuted as adults. Serious offenses, such as murder
or rape, can be prosecuted through adult court in England. How ever, as of 2007,
no United States data reported any exact numbers of juvenile offenders
prosecuted as adults. In contrast, countries such as Australia and Japan are in the
early stages of developing and implementing youth-focused justice
initiatives Positive youth justice as a deferment from adult court.

CHARACTERISTICS OF JUVENILE COURT

The characteristics of juvenile courts, as observed by sutherlnd and cressey are

as follows-

1. Broad definition of delinquency- for dealing with the juvenile offenders a

broad definition of juvenile courts are more interested in the reformation of
juvenile offenders. The criminal intent, responsilibity, and elements of guilt
 do not occupy much importance.
2. Informal procedures- the procedure adopted in the juvenile court is for
informal. The police is supposed to be considerate while arresting juveniles.
3. Investigations- the investigations involves two things, firstly, the question
of facts regarding specific offence, is decided. Secondly, the social situations
of the child are investigated on the basis of information secured in this way,
the child is either placed in detention nor released on bail.
4. Hearing- after investigation, the juvenile court judge hears the case. In
hearing the case weighing evidence is avoided. Attempts are made to
consider specific violation of law.
5. Jurisdiction- the juvenile court exercises jurisdiction over children’s cases.
But this jurisdiction varies from state to state and from country to country.
Generally, the juvenile court has exclusive jurisdiction over children’s case.
6. The disposition- the sentencing procedure in the juvenile court is called
disposition of a case and treatment of juvenile offender depends on the
investigation which is conducted regarding his offence and social conditions.

TYPES OF JUVENILE COURTS

there are really two types of juvenile courts - dependency and delinquency.
Dependency court has to do with where juveniles will live and who will have
custody over them - but it is not the kind of child custody dealt with in family
courts as the result of divorce. It has more to do with unfit parents and
termination of parental rights.

Then, delinquency court has to do with children who are accused of committing
crimes. The basis for juvenile court is that children are not yet fully formed
mentally, they are subject to pressure from others in ways adults are not, and, in
most cases, they should be given more of an opportunity to be rehabilitated and
not pay for the rest of their lives for a juvenile mistake. The emphasis is generally
more on rehabilitation than punishment. That said, most jurisdictions have
statutory provisions whereby an older juvenile who is accused of committing
serious crimes (usually crimes of violence) can, following strictly mandated
procedures and findings by the court, be tried as an adult and, with a few
exceptions, be sentenced as an adult.

ORIGIN AND DEVELOPMENT OF JUVENILE COURTS

According to the provisions of various probation acts the government have set
up the juvenile courts. Previously children were tried and punished in the same
way as adults. But the probation acts have provided that for certain offence the
penalties for minors might differ from those for adults. Therefore, the juvenile
courts hear charges against children and young persons. These courts have
exclusing jurisdiction in proceeding which are concerned with children. At
present the juvenile courts are enforce in U.P., West Bengal, Punjab, Mysore and
Kerala. The juvenile courts in these provinces deal with the adolscent offenders
and placed them in the correctional institutions known as borstals. At present
Borstals Schools Acts are in operation in the states of Andhra Pradesh, Mysore,
Kerala, Punjab, U.P., West Bengal and M.P., The Reformatory Schools Act of 1897
has been made applicable to all bigger States and few Union Territories.
Reformatory School have been established by State Government where child
offenders are sent for detention.
The trial of a juvenile offender is conducted in a special court, specially
constituted to save them from the rigourous of ordinary law and to protect the
procedure from being challenged under articles 15 & 21 of the Constitution of
India for undue discrimination, if juveniles are subjected to usual judicial process
of arrest, prosecution, defence, burden of proof, conviction, the whole purpose of
juvenile legislation would be defeated. The State Government is empowered to
constitute for any specified area one or more juvenile courts for exercising the
powers and discharging the duties confered or imposed on such court in relation
to delinquent juveniles. A juvenile court shall consist of such number of
metropolitan Magistrates or judicial Magistrates of the first class, as the case may
be, forming a Bench as the State Government thinks fit to appoint one of them
shall be designated as the Principal Magistrate. Every Bench shall have the
powers of Metropolitan Magiatrate, or as the case may be, of Chief Judicial
Magistrate under the code of Code Of Criminal Procedure. The State Government
shall appoint a panel of two honorary social workers of whom atleast one shall
be a women possessing the qualifications prescribed by the State Government
for the assistance of the Court.

PROCEDURE-

The majority opinion has been prescribed to prevail when there is a difference of
opinion among the members of a Board or the Court. However, when there is no
such majority,the opinion of the Chairman of the principal Magistrate shall
prevail. The Board or the court may act notwithstanding the absence of a any
member of the Board or the Magistrate of the Court and no order made by the
Board or the Magistrate shall be invalid on the groung of absence of the member
or the Magistrate of the Court at any stage of the proceeding. Noboby can be
appointed as a member of a board or a Magistrate of the court if in the opinion of
the State Government he has not special knowledge of child psychology and child
welfare. When a juvenile board or a juvenile court is constitued under J.J. Act for
any area it shall have, expect as otherwise expressely provided by the Act
exclusive power to deal with all proceedings under this Act relating to neglected
juveniles or delinquent juveniles notwithstandings anything contained in any
other law for the time being in force. If no such Board or Court has been
constituted for any area the power confered on the Board or Court of the area
shall be exercise by the District Magistrate, the Sub- divisional Magistrate or any
Metropolitan Magistrate or Judicial Magistrate of the first class. The powers may
also be exercised by the High Court or the Court of Sessions whe any proceeding
comes before them in appeal, revision or otherwise. If a Magistrate having no
Jurisdiction over the Juveniles is of the opinion that any person brought before
him under any of the provision of the Act ( Otherwise then for giving the
Evidence) is a juvenile, he shall after reading his opinion forward the juvenile
and record of the proceedings to the competent authority having jurisdiction
over it and the authority to whom the proceeding is forwarded shall hold the
enquiry as if the juveniles had been originally brought before him.
Criminal defendants under the age of 18 are sent to juvenile court. In
juvenile court, you will not be tried in front of a jury. Instead, a judge
will look at the evidence presented by a prosecutor and reach a decision
on whether you have committed the crime.

Punishments for juvenile offenders

Juvenile courts offer youth offenders many sentencing options, also

known as “disposition orders.” These sentencing options fall under two
major categories and depend on the severity of the offense and the
minor’s criminal history:

 Incarceration
 Non-incarceration1

Incarceration may sound like a jail or prison sentence, but often times it
is not. There are many different ways a juvenile court judge can order
confinement for a juvenile offender.

Regardless of your circumstances, a knowledgeable juvenile attorney is

necessary to help guide you through this difficult process. Our attorneys
at Wallin & Klarich can help you develop an aggressive defense to keep
you or a loved one out of jail.

Incarceration Options for Juvenile Delinquents

Once a juvenile court judge determines that the minor violated a

criminal law, he or she may order incarceration as a penalty. Here are
some of the different levels of incarceration you may face as a juvenile
delinquent:
  Home confinement or house arrest: The judge orders the
minor to remain at home with certain exceptions for places such
as school and counseling visits;
 Placement with someone other than a parent or
guardian: The judge orders that you live with a relative, or in a
group or a foster home;
 Juvenile hall: You are ordered to stay in a juvenile detention
center for a short term;
 Probation (after juvenile hall): You may be ordered to stay in a
juvenile detention facility for a few months and then be put on
probation;
 Secured juvenile facilities: For more serious crimes, you may be
sentenced to stay in a secured juvenile facility for a longer period
of time;
 Adult jail: In a very serious case, you may be ordered to spend
time in an adult county jail or state prison;
 Blended Sentence: In some jurisdictions, the juvenile court can
order that you spend time in a juvenile facility until you are 18,
then transfer to an adult jail.2

Non-Incarceration Punishments for Juvenile Offenders

A juvenile court judge also has the discretion to offer rehabilitation

options for you, depending on the crime. Some disposition orders that
do not include confinement are:

 Verbal Warning: The judge simply reprimands you

verbally;
 Minors could face jail time for crimes in California.
 Fine: You are ordered to pay a fine to the government or to the
victim, if any;
  Counseling;
 Community Service: As your punishment, the court may ask that
you complete a certain number of hours in service to your
community;
 Electronic Monitoring: You are ordered to wear a wrist or ankle
bracelet at all times to verify where you are for a certain period of
time;

Probation: You may be assigned certain conditions that you have to

meet, including attending counseling, meeting curfews, avoiding certain
individuals (such as gang members) and completing anger management
classes. In this case you will be assigned a probation officer who reports
back to the court.

 First Degree Murder;

 Rape;
 Forcible sex offenses in concert with another person;
 Forcible lewd and lascivious acts on a child under 14 years of age;
 Forcible penetration by a foreign object; and
 Sodomy or oral copulation by force, violence or menace.