NCJ Number
91428
Date Published
1982
Length
39 pages
Annotation
Written as though the reader is a juvenile being processed in the Virginia juvenile justice system, this handbook details how cases involving an alleged crime are processed in the system from arrest through aftercare.
Abstract
The introductory section provides advice on where a juvenile may receive counseling and the legal rights a juvenile possesses that have particular relevance to criminal justice processing. The discussion of arrest defines the forms and procedures associated with it as well as rights during arrest and what to do in case of police mistreatment. What follows immediately after arrest if the court is open or closed is indicated. Intake is described, and the role of probation officers in intake and the need for a juvenile to have a lawyer at this stage are discussed. The detention hearing, which is held within 72 hours of arrest and before the adjudicatory hearing, is described, including types of detention and what to expect upon arriving at and during detention. Discipline and punishment while in detention and the role of an attorney at this stage are briefly considered. The next stages considered are the transfer hearing, which determines whether the case is tried in juvenile or adult court, and the adjudicatory hearing (the trial). Some possible dispositions at the adjudicatory hearing are outlined, as is the appeals process. Finally, reception and diagnostic centers as well as learning centers are discussed, followed by a listing of the services and activities of aftercare. A glossary is included.