In the history of American law and justice, the first juvenile court was established in1899. The Juvenile Justice and Correctional Process is made up of a few phases that are utilized to help the child whose age ranges between 7 to 18 years for the interest of the both the society and the youths. In addition, there are guidelines on judgment techniques, circumstances, and contribution that contrast inside states. Thus, the objective of this essay is to investigate the juvenile procedure and correction in California while considering the case study of Colleen a 15 year old who was arrested for involuntary homicide with an examination of the most suitable rehabilitation arrangement for a nonviolent offense.
In the contextual analysis, Colleen, a 15 year old inhabitant of California was detained for involuntary murder of her neighbor and as per the charges of the offense; she was not discharged but rather was taken to the Eastlake Juvenile Hall for booking. At the probation, a resolution was made between recording a petition or remanding her to an adult department or referring her to an adult court (Jordan, 2013). Besides, there was compelling evidence that supported the admission officer and the lead prosecutor stated that the mother to the suspect is in drug rehabilitation center. Consequently, the suspect together with her mother were abandoned by the father at childhood. The other issues that were brought up in the colleen’s case were that she stays with her aunt, and in many cases, she was reportedly missing and running away. However, she is found of coming back on her own.
Report to correction for a non-violent offender
According to the state laws, any offender found of being guilty of a violent crime, is supposed to be subjected to the maximum punishment and fine. However, for the under aged persons whose offense are less serious due to its non-violent nature, are supposed to be given a lenient judgment that will soon allow them to join the reset of the society(Jordan, 2013). Since the creation of the Juvenile court, the under-aged individuals are able to manage their conduct, so that they do not land on the offensive part of the law. The juvenile court has stipulated regulations that will seek to prosecute both the violent and the non-violent minor criminals; in this case, their punishment will differ depending on the degree of their offence. The non-violent offenders are normally taken to approved school for some days or subjected to house arrest. Some of the minor punishments that could be subjected to non-violent minor criminals in a juvenile court include: an offender may be referred to a HALT program; youth detention; behavioral program order; payment of a fine or damages, and sanctions. These charges only apply on those who are between 12 to 14 years old, since those who are below 12 years are never prosecuted. On the other hand, those who are aged between 16 to 22 years old, can either be prosecuted or sentenced before the juvenile court or adult one, this is per the adolescence criminal law (Morrow, Dario & Rodriguez, 2014).
Finally, it has been noted that, from the time juvenile court was established, the unlawful activities among the under aged children has reduced drastically since they are aware of the consequences that awaits them when they are found guilty of their behaviors. The sentences are used to instill fear among them so that they do not repeat their mistakes that offend the rights of others or the state laws.
References
Jordan, K. (2013). Juvenile Status and Criminal Sentencing: Does It Matter in the Adult System?Youth Violence and Juvenile Justice, 12(4), 315-331.
Morrow, W., Dario, L., & Rodriguez, N. (2014). Examining the prevalence of a ‘youth discount’ in the juvenile justice system. Journal of Crime and Justice, 38(4), 473-490.
