Children’s decisions often befuddle or anger their parents. Crazy social media challenges are a good example. Some children eat laundry detergent pods, drive blindfolded, go for a spin in a clothes dryers, and do other insane things. These children see the possible reward (peer accolades and social medial likes) but don’t appreciate the possible risk (serious injury and death). Adults clearly see the behavior as risky, but to a child, it’s risk-free.
The same principle applies to simple assault, drug possession, disorderly conduct, and other common juvenile offenses. Drug possession is an especially good example. Many children who possess drugs don’t intend to use or sell them. They just want to show them off to their friends. They don’t ignore the risk of being caught. To them, the risk doesn’t exist.
Georgia’s juvenile justice system, which dates back to the early 1900s, accounts for this key difference between children and adults. Instead of trying children as adults, the system recognizes that children and teenagers think and act differently than fully developed adults. It is largely rehabilitative in nature rather than punitive and offers many protections and alternatives adult proceedings do not. In other words, for a Marietta criminal defense lawyer, juvenile court isn’t criminal junior court. It’s a different world.
Age Matters
In Georgia, children under the age of 13 cannot be tried as adults. Usually, juvenile courts have exclusive jurisdiction over children between 13 and 17. The exceptions are the so-called seven deadly sins:
- Murder, voluntary manslaughter, or attempted murder,
- Sexual battery,
- Armed robbery,
- Aggravated child molestation,
- Aggravated sodomy,
- Kidnapping,
- Drug trafficking,
- Aggravated assault on a teacher,
- Third burglary,
- Fourth felony,
- Arson, and
- Hijacking a motor vehicle
We are well aware that this includes more than seven offenses. But that’s just the name. Prosecutors can also request transfer in a few other cases, but the burden of proof is higher. These transfer requests usually fail, because except in extreme cases, transfer isn’t in the best interests of the child. More on that below.
Other delinquent acts that aren’t “criminal” acts include routinely skipping school, disobeying parents or guardians, frequenting alcohol-selling establishments without an adult, and running away.
What’s in a Name?
Names have power. A riot has different connotations than a demonstration, even though these two words could refer to the same incident. Graybeards may remember that the Kennedys carefully referred to the 1969 Chappaquiddick incident as a “barbecue,” not a “party.”
Therefore, juvenile and adult proceedings use different words to describe what is, in effect, the same thing. In most cases, the courts refer to the criminal acts of juveniles as “delinquent acts” or “status offenses.” The state refers to convicted offenders as “delinquents” or “unruly children,” not criminals. Juveniles are “taken into custody,” not arrested. These language differences are minor, but important. They underscore the difference between juvenile criminal behavior and adult criminal behavior, as outlined above.
The Legal Process
Adults go through arrest, indictment, and pretrial proceedings before a trial or a plea hearing. Juveniles in Georgia go through the following process.
Informal Adjustment
Basically, informal adjustment in juvenile court is the equivalent of pretrial diversion in adult court. If an adult defendant successfully complies with all pretrial diversion program requirements, usually staying out of trouble, paying restitution, and performing community service, prosecutors dismiss the case.
As mentioned, in juvenile court, there’s no criminal case to dismiss. Additionally, a juvenile intake officer, as opposed to a Marietta criminal defense lawyer, typically requests IA. However, a lawyer often convinces the intake officer to make this request.
Adjustment periods last three months and can be extended another three months. During the adjustment period, the juvenile must comply with recommended activities, including counseling, sending apology letters, writing essays, or performing volunteer work.
Status adjustment is primarily designed for nonviolent infractions. If the juvenile completes all program requirements within three (or six) months, the court releases the juvenile. If the intake officer doesn’t offer informal adjustment, or the child doesn’t complete the program, the matter moves to the next level.
Formal Hearing
Although they resemble criminal trials in many ways, formal hearings focus not on guilt or innocence, but on the best interests of the child. Instead of a criminal case, the prosecutor presents a case for rehabilitation. A long period of probation or a short period of removal, usually to a secure halfway house, is usually the centerpiece of this plan.
The plan could also include confinement in a juvenile justice detention center. These centers address basic needs, like education, protection, training, and health care. While these facilities may not offer comfortable accommodations, they do take an increased interest in rehabilitation when compared to adult correctional facilities.
In response to the rehabilitation plan, a Marietta criminal defense lawyer focuses on juvenile rights and defending the child against the accusations. If the state can’t prove the child did anything wrong, there’s no need for rehabilitation.
The judge has a different role as well. The rules of evidence are very relaxed in juvenile proceedings. Judges have much more discretion in this area. Furthermore, minors aren’t entitled to jury trials.
Juveniles may not receive jury trials, but they do receive other protections. The courts must consider confessions carefully. They can only accept a confession if a juvenile knowingly and voluntarily complied with investigators’ requests. The state must use juvenile-friendly interrogation methods and determine if the child actually had the capacity to understand his or her rights at the time of detention.
Formal hearings involve both an adjudicatory hearing to determine the validity of the charge and a dispositional hearing to determine the consequences. At the dispositional hearing, much like a sentencing hearing, both parties can present arguments to influence the consequences of the delinquent act.
Children and adults are treated differently in Georgia. For a free consultation with an experienced Marietta criminal defense lawyer, contact The Phillips Law Firm, LLC. We routinely handle matters in Cobb County and nearby jurisdictions.
