Juvenile Jurisdiction and Typical Juvenile Cases
Jurisdiction is the granted ability to exert authority over an individual or entity. It can also outline the geographical area in which one's authority is recognized. As it relates to juvenile courts, the jurisdiction varies based on legislation passed by each state, as the United States has no federal juvenile court system. Typically, once jurisdiction has been established, the juvenile court system takes cases ranging from juvenile status crimes to juvenile delinquents.
Jurisdiction
Jurisdiction is the power of a court to hear cases and decide their outcome. In regard to the jurisdiction of juvenile courts, there is no federal juvenile court system, so each state has established their own system and criteria for determining jurisdiction. The federal government has passed various …show more content…
Each state through legislation has decided its own age limits on the jurisdiction of the juvenile court system. Generally, children under the age of seven have been found not to be able to form criminal intent. Meaning they cannot decide what is right and wrong in regards to their actions, and therefore these children fall outside of most juvenile jurisdictions. According to (Szymanski, 2011), "In 11 states, a child must be at least 10 years of age for juvenile court jurisdiction" and in other states there is no minimum age limit for juveniles. (Merlo, 2016) Most states and the federal government set the upper age limit for juveniles as any persons who have not attained their 18th birthday (18 U.S.C.A, 2009). In 9 states the maximum age to the tried as a juvenile is 16 or younger. (National Center for Juvenile Justice, 2016) North Carolina recently passed House Bill 280, that would allow a 16- or 17-year-old who commits certain crimes to be tried as a juvenile – not as an adult. (North Carolina General Assembly - House Bill 280,
Jurisdiction is the granted ability to exert authority over an individual or entity. It can also outline the geographical area in which one's authority is recognized. As it relates to juvenile courts, the jurisdiction varies based on legislation passed by each state, as the United States has no federal juvenile court system. Typically, once jurisdiction has been established, the juvenile court system takes cases ranging from juvenile status crimes to juvenile delinquents.
Jurisdiction
Jurisdiction is the power of a court to hear cases and decide their outcome. In regard to the jurisdiction of juvenile courts, there is no federal juvenile court system, so each state has established their own system and criteria for determining jurisdiction. The federal government has passed various …show more content…
Each state through legislation has decided its own age limits on the jurisdiction of the juvenile court system. Generally, children under the age of seven have been found not to be able to form criminal intent. Meaning they cannot decide what is right and wrong in regards to their actions, and therefore these children fall outside of most juvenile jurisdictions. According to (Szymanski, 2011), "In 11 states, a child must be at least 10 years of age for juvenile court jurisdiction" and in other states there is no minimum age limit for juveniles. (Merlo, 2016) Most states and the federal government set the upper age limit for juveniles as any persons who have not attained their 18th birthday (18 U.S.C.A, 2009). In 9 states the maximum age to the tried as a juvenile is 16 or younger. (National Center for Juvenile Justice, 2016) North Carolina recently passed House Bill 280, that would allow a 16- or 17-year-old who commits certain crimes to be tried as a juvenile – not as an adult. (North Carolina General Assembly - House Bill 280,