Posted: August 1st, 2023

Juvenile Law

Answer the questions below Unit 4 – 6: each question must have 360-400 words for initial posts. Please use this follow the book to reference for information to answer the questions.
Juvenile Justice System, The: Delinquency, Processing, and the Law, 8th Edition.
ISBN-13: 978-0-13-409979-8
By Alida V. Merlo, Peter J. Benekos, Dean J. Champion Published by Pearson, Copyright ©2016

Unit 4-Chapters 6 &7
1. You are a juvenile intake officer. A 15-year old accused of burglary of a home has been brought to you by the police. What are the factors, both legal and extralegal, you would want to know before making a decision to detain the juvenile pending trial or release him pending trial? 360-400 words
Unit 5 – Chapter 8
2. What is a “waiver” and what other terms are sometimes used to describe the waiver process? What types of offenders are usually transferred for trial as adults, and what characteristics would be most important in making the decision of whether to transfer a juvenile? 360-400 words
Unit 6 – Chapters 9 & 10
3. What is “risk prediction” and what forms does it take? What is the purpose? What are some examples of aggravating and mitigating circumstances? Do you think risk prediction models should be used more, or do they take away too much from wise and independent individual decision making? 360-400 words
Juvenile Law
Name
Institutional Affiliation

Intake Decision-making
The intake of juveniles will involve screening, especially for legal sufficiency, to determine whether a minor is detained or released pending trial. There are several legal and extra-legal factors that the police will have to consider before making the decision. The legal considerations are the presence of elements of a chargeable offense. The standard elements would be the offense itself, the intention, the concurrence, and the causation (Merlo, Benekos & Champion, 2016). Additionally, the police officer is to look into whether the juvenile has had any previous contact with the juvenile justice system. In case the offenses committed are severe, the officer should consider the available evidence against the youth. They could also consider referring the offender to social service agencies or psychological counselors to receive counseling and guidance services (Merlo, Benekos & Champion, 2016). If the juvenile has committed a serious crime, has had prior contact with the juvenile system and is uncooperative, then they are more likely to be detained.
For the extra-legal factors considered in intake decision-making, they comprise age, race, socio-economic status, and gender (Merlo, Benekos & Champion, 2016). Nonetheless, decisions cannot be solely made based on extra-legal factors. Research has indicated that some communities, for instance, males from lower-class, have a higher probability of receiving a formal response or be detained in comparison to other groups. Female status offenders have also been seen to be treated more harshly than their male counterparts. These two instances could potentially cause bias, and that is something the officer should avoid. The officer needs to consider respective statutes and the constitution to ensure the decision made is not illegal. The police officer could have interviews with the juvenile’s parents or guardians as a source of information. Generally, intake is an informal procedure but a vital stage in juvenile processing (Merlo, Benekos & Champion, 2016). In this case, the officer is acting in an advisory capacity since he or she is the first juvenile court contact for the child and respective parents or guardians. The police officer needs to take into consideration the legal and extra-legal factors before making the intake decision for the affected individual. The main objective is to achieve a higher quality of justice for the juvenile and other victims affected in the offense committed.
The Juvenile Waiver and its Process
A juvenile waiver is a decision taken by a judge to take a case from the juvenile court into an adult court (Merlo, Benekos & Champion, 2016). The filing of the waiver will mean that the juvenile court no longer has the jurisdiction to listen to this case. The transfer into the criminal court will mean that the juvenile gets to face the charges there.
These mechanisms could be likened to the waiver process that allows the juvenile to be waived into an adult criminal court. The primary waiver mechanisms are the judicial waiver and the legislative waiver (Merlo, Benekos & Champion, 2016). The judicial waiver involves a hearing which incorporates a due process and full investigation. While the judicial waiver has its guidelines from the statutes, it can also consider the prosecutor’s discretion. The legislative waiver involves state statutes, which indicate that juveniles who have committed particular crimes and have surpassed a specific age are automatically charged in the adult court with the juvenile court having no jurisdiction over the case. The legislative waiver is also considered the statutory exclusion and involves situations such as murder (Merlo, Benekos & Champion, 2016). Another mechanism is the prosecutorial direct-file, which allows the prosecutor to decide on transferring the juveniles. The prosecutor could choose to have the case filed in the juvenile court or adult criminal court. This waiver will have no formal hearing by the court to determine the proper court that should handle that case. There also no official standards nor requirements as it is up to the prosecutor’s discretion on whether to waive the claim.
The juvenile waiver is typically reserved for those who have committed particularly egregious crimes. Most of the severe offenses will need evidence to show that the juvenile acted with a criminal intention, which is similar to when an adult commits the crime. The crimes that are subject to juvenile waivers include violent crimes, breaking the law of firearms, and violating the rules of drug-possession and its distribution. It may be considered unconstitutional to have a juvenile transferred to an adult court for minor crimes. Conversely, a juvenile waiver can also be issued if the suspect has a prior history of committing serious crimes. Other characteristics considered for a juvenile waiver include the juvenile’s age, mental capacity, maturity, and rehabilitation prospects.
Risk prediction
Risk prediction entails finding “the risk of offending” for assessing and managing risk in the criminal justice administration process. Risk prediction will depend on the history of severe and violent persons together with the precise factors that could lead to such an identification. The aggravating and mitigating factors considered in risk prediction have a function of either increasing or decreasing the severity of the risk (Merlo, Benekos & Champion, 2016). The mitigating factors will reduce the severity and include first-time offenses; individuals have shown a history of good character, submission of a guilty plea or remorse expression, and mental impairment during the time of the offense, among others. On the other hand, the aggravating factors in the circumstances will increase the severity of the risk of crime. These factors include a threat of being violent or using a weapon, being cruel, and infliction of physical or psychological pain or damages; vulnerable victims were targeted, the offense was meticulously planned and executed with a purpose and also a prior criminal record.
Risk prediction models need to be considered when making decisions as they could provide a basis for the offender. They could also help in making decisions since the judge will now understand the root cause of being an offender and find its solutions. However, the judge is not supposed to limit their decisions based on the outcome of the prediction models. Each case will have its circumstances and should also be prioritized. For instance, a severe crime such as robbery with violence for a first time offender should not lead the judge into thinking that the offenders should receive a lenient decision. It is about ensuring that the right justice is upheld for all parties.

References
Merlo, A.V., Benekos, P.J., Champion, D.J. (2016). Juvenile Justice System, The: Delinquency, Processing, and the Law, 8th Edition. Pearson.

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