Types of Juvenile Courts - Essay Example

Juvenile Courts It is often said that the youth is the hope of the future and so we believe they are. More often than not, the has put theirhopes on them as the successor of the present-day leaders in order to continue their legacy. The schools and their homes in particular, play a major role in honing these individuals to become better citizens of the country in general. These responsibilities are deemed as one of the most important activities of the country. However, there are juveniles who went astray and become menace of the society. They tend to do things, which most criminals do. They are engaged in activities that is harmful and disgrace to the society. There are accounts to prove these claims and with this, they tend to resort on things, which worsen their personalities-Drugs, theft, robbery, sexual assaults and even murder are some of the crimes that they commit. There are measures that are continuously done by the authorities to prevent or at least lessen this kind of activities. Most of the people have put the blame on their parents while some attributed this kind of occurrence to the leniency of laws particularly in correcting the children, which deals in sparing the rod. Most of the critics agree that this kind of method spoils the children and they likewise feel that they are free to do whatever they want to do. These things do occur and parents are the pointed culprits on these. They (parents) suffer such a fate since it is their responsibilities to raise their children. Juvenile Courts 2 However, is it enough to put the blame on the parents alone How about when these children are out of their homes It is an established fact that most of the boys and girls in their puberty age shows untoward behavior and such occurrences do have different reasons, which the science cannot explain to date. When juveniles commit illegal activities, they were arrested and tried as most of the states here claim that it cannot tolerate such untoward behavior. In this case, psychologists and sociologists agree that in order to correct these individuals, the method of correcting them must be different from the method that the justice system applies in reprimanding individuals in legal ages. Juvenile courts are tailored for the correction of minors in order for them to be corrected and become more matured in order to ensure that they would not commit the same mistakes again. Basically, it is divided into three parts "separated into three types: independent and separate courts, part of a family court and unit within a trial court" (Miriam Van Waters, p. 299). This court can either examine or determine the process of correcting a convicted juvenile. Of course, the kind of correction is much lighter than the convicted criminal on the basis that they are on their "tender" or "innocent years." The court also focuses on the development of these individuals, rather than punishment. To add to that, the web also has the definition on juvenile court: legal-explanations.com (2006) stressed that "The court that takes up the cases where there is an involvement of children below eighteen years of age and who are dependant, abused, or out of control. But the cases which has been charged on the under age child as adult cannot be tried in this court. Juvenile Courts 3 A critic claimed, "It is impossible to eradicate juvenile delinquencies if we don't delve on the roots why these things happen." True enough, like most of the crimes and problems, their roots must be eradicated to prevent further harm. In recent studies, most children are involved in gangs and similar organizations solely on the basis of peer pressure in which most of them tend to believe that they should be involved in such organizations for them to cope-up with the society as most of them presume. In this kind of situation, a certain method should be done. In avoiding this kind of scenario to happen, one must know that proper education among the juveniles should be done. This responsibility should not be on the shoulders of the parents rather it should deal with the affairs of the society like the school, government institutions and the likes. If properly introduced to them, they would be guided and become responsible individuals in terms of their doings and their actions. They would also be inclined on a more productive activities rather than gangs. For example, in Christianity, if we are to derive teachings from the Bible, it was stated in Proverbs 22:6 to " train up a child in a way they should go, so when they grow up, they would not depart from it." Upon analyzing this passage, the development of the children should start from their younger years and it would later be their guiding principle in their lives. These things should also be considered in order to prevent these juveniles from joining gangs, which encourage them to do things that are contrary to what the law dictates. Juvenile Courts 4 In doing such things, one must know that this kind of activity is vital for these youth to have a sense of responsibility for them not to commit things, which are contrary to the law. Instilling these teachings on them would develop these individuals to engage themselves on more productive activities. In the same way, law enforcers who execute laws should also be aware that reprimanding juveniles should spare them from a law designed for the people who are included in the age bracket 18 years and over. Establishing a bracket between juvenile and legal age offenders would ensure the discrepancy of these two kinds of offenders. Definitely, the aim of putting them into this kind of classification would make the difference. For the juveniles, the court is set for the development regardless of their age. Juvenile courts were designed for them to realize their mistakes and set a room for them to rectify things rather than to make them feel that they are being punished. Among those things that are in need to be measured is the way these juveniles are responding in lieu with what the court have decided. If we are to derive the other juvenile courts, we might have a clearer picture on how this court works. A second type of juvenile courts comes within the scope of family courts. Child custody, child-victim cases and other criminal offences related to the child comes under the jurisdiction of family courts. The third type is a unit in trial court where trials against the child is settled. In this case, these things are made clearer to the child offender that life has more things to offer rather than their stay inside the prison cell. Juvenile Courts 5 The juvenile which was convicted by the juvenile court must undergo healing process and some of the way to do this is to make the juvenile realize the cost of his mistake and he was persecuted not by himself but by the thing he committed. Secondly, the sense of productivity should also be implied as most of them feel that they are useless and meaningless. By involving them into activity that would make them realize their worth they would look life into a deeper perspective. For example, one can find a sport that would explore their potential, it can also be in the field of arts or in some things that would change or derive their thinking that they are in the state of correction. Staging the classification of these courts as to where they would be classified is an important tool for the government to decide on the bounds of penalizing or correcting these kinds of offenders. All in all, the importance of imparting this kind of correction in a certain state is vital in cultivating the mindset of the juveniles particularly the offenders. This kind of law and practice would ensure that though some of them have offended the law in their young age, the sense of responsibility among them would be imparted and would pave the way for the stability of the state in dealing affairs that would involve the youth and their future. Making the juvenile delinquents realize that life doesn't end after they have committed a violation is a determinant for a certain state between winning and loosing. After all, juveniles are defined as "A person who is under eighteen years of age; or for the purpose of proceedings and disposition because of an act of juvenile delinquency, a person who is under twenty-one years of age. 18 U.S.C. (lectlaw 2006) ### Reference: 1)Miriam Van Waters. (2005). The Juvenile Court and Alternatives at Intake. Juvenile Justice. New York: Thomson/Wadsworth. 2) Juvenile court. Opened October 26, 2006 URL available http://www.legal-explanations.com/definitions/juvenile-court.htm 3) Proverbs 22:6. The Holy Bible. King James Version 4) Definition of Juveniles. Opened October 26, 2006 URL available http://www.lectlaw.com/def/j018.htm Read More