Juvenile and Adult Courts: a Comparative Analysis
Juvenile and Adult Courts: A Comparative Analysis
Juvenile and Adult Courts: A Comparative Analysis:
Introduction
The United States government is based on a checks and balances type system. The three main parts of this system are the executive branch, the legislative branch, and the judicial branch. This judicial system’s job is to uphold the law of the land. Law can be defined as a set of rules or norms of conduct which mandate, proscribe or permit specified relationships among people and organizations, provide methods for ensuring the impartial treatment of such people, and provide punishments for those who do not follow the established rules of conduct (Wikipedia.org, 2005). This is a very wide and all encompassing definition of the law and the governing judicial system. Just like the United States government the judicial system is broken up into different checks, balances, and systems. Two of these main systems are the juvenile justices system and the adult justice system. The obvious difference between these two courts is that the juvenile system is designed to handle youth offenders and the adult system is designed to handle adult offenders. Both of these two systems despite their difference have the same end goal; to administer justice. In the pages to follow we will discuss the big picture of the juvenile justice system, go over a point by point comparison between the juvenile system and the adult system, touch on both the benefits and disadvantages to being tried as a minor in the juvenile court from the perspective of a minor, and review the societal implication of abolishing the juvenile court system.
Overview of Juvenile Justice System
The main component of the juvenile justice system is that it is designed to cater to minors who break the law. The legal information institute categorizes it as; juvenile justice is the area of criminal law applicable to persons not old enough to be held responsible for criminal acts. In most states,
Juvenile and Adult Courts: A Comparative Analysis:
Introduction
The United States government is based on a checks and balances type system. The three main parts of this system are the executive branch, the legislative branch, and the judicial branch. This judicial system’s job is to uphold the law of the land. Law can be defined as a set of rules or norms of conduct which mandate, proscribe or permit specified relationships among people and organizations, provide methods for ensuring the impartial treatment of such people, and provide punishments for those who do not follow the established rules of conduct (Wikipedia.org, 2005). This is a very wide and all encompassing definition of the law and the governing judicial system. Just like the United States government the judicial system is broken up into different checks, balances, and systems. Two of these main systems are the juvenile justices system and the adult justice system. The obvious difference between these two courts is that the juvenile system is designed to handle youth offenders and the adult system is designed to handle adult offenders. Both of these two systems despite their difference have the same end goal; to administer justice. In the pages to follow we will discuss the big picture of the juvenile justice system, go over a point by point comparison between the juvenile system and the adult system, touch on both the benefits and disadvantages to being tried as a minor in the juvenile court from the perspective of a minor, and review the societal implication of abolishing the juvenile court system.
Overview of Juvenile Justice System
The main component of the juvenile justice system is that it is designed to cater to minors who break the law. The legal information institute categorizes it as; juvenile justice is the area of criminal law applicable to persons not old enough to be held responsible for criminal acts. In most states,
References: Faculty.ncwc.edu. (2005). An Overview of Juvenile Justice. Retrieved July 8, 2005, from http://faculty.ncwc.edu/toconnor/111/111lect14.htm LII. (2005). Juvenile Justice: an overview. Retrieved July 8, 2005, from http://straylight.law.cornell.edu/topics/juvenile.html PBS.org. (2005). Juvenile vs. Adult Justice. Retrieved July 9, 2005, from http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/juvenile/stats/juvvsadult.html Wikipedia.org (2005). Law. Retrieved July 8, 2005, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Judicial_system