NCJ Number
102571
Journal
New York Law School Law Review Volume: 28 Issue: 1 Dated: (1983) Pages: 101-122
Date Published
1983
Length
22 pages
Annotation
Certain trends are eroding the confidentiality of juvenile court hearings to the detriment of opportunity for rehabilitation.
Abstract
In Davis v. Alaska (1974), the confidential delinquency record of a juvenile witness was ordered disclosed in a public courtroom to assist an adult criminal defendant's attorney in effective cross-examination, as confidentiality concerns were overridden by the right of a defendant to impeach the credibility of an accuser. In Smith v. Daily Mail Publishing Co., (1957) the U.S. Supreme Court upheld a newspaper's right to publish the identity of a 14-year-old offender when the information was obtained through routine reporting techniques. Some jurisdictions have enacted provisional access statutes, which permit the admission of journalists to juvenile proceedings, provided published news reports do not disclose the juvenile's identity. The transfer of a juvenile to adult court jurisdiction removes any right to records confidentiality. The confidentiality of a juvenile's identity is important in rehabilitation, since the stigma of a juvenile record can produce further alienation of the juvenile from normative social groups and institutions. The press and public's interest in access to juvenile court proceedings is satisfied by provisional access that preserves the confidentiality of a juvenile's identity, and the identities of serious and chronic juvenile offenders apparently impervious to rehabilitation are revealed in adult court. 124 footnotes.