The Difference Between Juvenile and Adult Courts

The juvenile court system was created after the 1899 Illinois Act, and the jurisdiction of such courts was supposed to extend to minors below the age of 16 who violated any local or state law (Champion, 2001). Minors can be put in custody because of delinquency or dependency. Delinquent juveniles are those who violate the law while youth put in custody because of dependency is due to abuse, neglect, and abandonment from parents or guardians. In both cases, there is need for rehabilitation and protection, especially because many of them do not understand the consequences of their actions and cannot fend for themselves. Several distinct differences exist between juvenile courts and adult courts. Adult offenders are presumed to be aware of the consequences of their actions, and when found guilty, they are taken to federal, state or county prisons. However, for the juveniles, they are mostly put under the custody of community centers for rehabilitation. Secondly, juvenile courts are limited in terms of the age of the offenders. Juveniles are often defined as minors starting from the age of 7 to 17, and, therefore, judges in these courts cannot rule on cases for individuals above or below this age bracket (Champion, 2001). Additionally, juvenile cases are conducted with a lot of confidentiality, probably to protect the minors from a lot of negative publicity. Some issues need to be addressed in future regarding the juvenile court system. The most prominent issue is that there is no federal juvenile court system. Different states have different laws that guide the juvenile court system. These disparities could present problems, especially in ensuring justice and fairness in the different juvenile courts. Having a federal juvenile justice system will bring some sort of balance in the processing of juvenile offenses, just like in adult courts. 

Reference 

Champion, D. J. (2001).  The juvenile justice system: Delinquency, processing, and the law . Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.