Trial as an adult
Encyclopedia
Trial as an adult is a term used to describe a situation when a juvenile offender
is tried
as if they were an adult.
Where specific protections exist for juvenile offenders (such as suppression
of an offenders name or picture or a closed courtroom where the proceedings are not made public), these protections may be waived.
Sanctions handed down are often harsher than those imposed on people tried as minors.
) automatically attract an adult trial. In others, this decision may be left to the judge
, magistrate
or prosecutor
.
Juveniles may also be tried as adults in Crown Court
for serious offences such as homicide, certain firearms offences, and grave crimes (including sexual assault
and child sex offences). Unlike in the Youth Court, trials are open to the public. Media name suppression can be waived at the discretion of the judge, but the young person has no authority in law to insist their own name be released.
. For especially violent offences, juveniles under 18 are tried as adults. Some states, for example Kentucky
, restrict the minimum age to be tried as an adult to 14.
Other states such as Florida
have passed laws allowing a person charged with an extremely heinous crime such as murder
to be tried as an adult, regardless of age.. Once a juvenile has stood trial as an adult and been convicted and sentenced, they are thereafter "handled in every respect as an adult for any subsequent violation of state law."
Many states also require juveniles to be tried as an adult if the defendant has previously been found guilty of an offense that would have been a felony
if it were committed by an adult.
are more serious in this kind of case than if the juvenile was tried as a child, certain allowances are still made due to the fact the offender is a minor.
This includes a juvenile offender not being forced to serve time in an adult prison, or with adult prisoners. Extreme sanctions such as the death penalty are generally not handed down to minors. Since 1990, only nine countries have executed offenders aged under 18 years at the time of their crime. These are the People's Republic of China
(PRC), Democratic Republic of the Congo
, Iran
, Nigeria
, Pakistan
, Saudi Arabia
, Sudan
, the United States
and Yemen
. Juvenile execution is currently prohibited in the United States following the ruling of the Supreme Court in Roper vs. Simmons.
Juvenile delinquency
Juvenile delinquency is participation in illegal behavior by minors who fall under a statutory age limit. Most legal systems prescribe specific procedures for dealing with juveniles, such as juvenile detention centers. There are a multitude of different theories on the causes of crime, most if not...
is tried
Trial (law)
In law, a trial is when parties to a dispute come together to present information in a tribunal, a formal setting with the authority to adjudicate claims or disputes. One form of tribunal is a court...
as if they were an adult.
Where specific protections exist for juvenile offenders (such as suppression
Suppression
The term suppression may refer to:* Oppression, the exercise of authority or power in a burdensome, cruel, or unjust manner, also an act or instance of oppressing...
of an offenders name or picture or a closed courtroom where the proceedings are not made public), these protections may be waived.
Sanctions handed down are often harsher than those imposed on people tried as minors.
Circumstances where a juvenile is tried as an adult
In some criminal jurisdictions, certain juvenile offences (such as homicideHomicide
Homicide refers to the act of a human killing another human. Murder, for example, is a type of homicide. It can also describe a person who has committed such an act, though this use is rare in modern English...
) automatically attract an adult trial. In others, this decision may be left to the judge
Judge
A judge is a person who presides over court proceedings, either alone or as part of a panel of judges. The powers, functions, method of appointment, discipline, and training of judges vary widely across different jurisdictions. The judge is supposed to conduct the trial impartially and in an open...
, magistrate
Magistrate
A magistrate is an officer of the state; in modern usage the term usually refers to a judge or prosecutor. This was not always the case; in ancient Rome, a magistratus was one of the highest government officers and possessed both judicial and executive powers. Today, in common law systems, a...
or prosecutor
Prosecutor
The prosecutor is the chief legal representative of the prosecution in countries with either the common law adversarial system, or the civil law inquisitorial system...
.
United Kingdom
Juveniles are generally tried in a youth court. If a juvenile is charged with an offence that was committed alongside an adult, then both offenders will be tried in an adult magistrates' court, except if it is necessary in the interests of justice that they both be tried in Crown Court.Juveniles may also be tried as adults in Crown Court
Crown Court
The Crown Court of England and Wales is, together with the High Court of Justice and the Court of Appeal, one of the constituent parts of the Senior Courts of England and Wales...
for serious offences such as homicide, certain firearms offences, and grave crimes (including sexual assault
Sexual assault
Sexual assault is an assault of a sexual nature on another person, or any sexual act committed without consent. Although sexual assaults most frequently are by a man on a woman, it may involve any combination of two or more men, women and children....
and child sex offences). Unlike in the Youth Court, trials are open to the public. Media name suppression can be waived at the discretion of the judge, but the young person has no authority in law to insist their own name be released.
United States
Most juveniles are tried in juvenile courtJuvenile court
A juvenile court is a tribunal having special authority to try and pass judgments for crimes committed by children or adolescents who have not attained the age of majority...
. For especially violent offences, juveniles under 18 are tried as adults. Some states, for example Kentucky
Kentucky
The Commonwealth of Kentucky is a state located in the East Central United States of America. As classified by the United States Census Bureau, Kentucky is a Southern state, more specifically in the East South Central region. Kentucky is one of four U.S. states constituted as a commonwealth...
, restrict the minimum age to be tried as an adult to 14.
Other states such as Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
have passed laws allowing a person charged with an extremely heinous crime such as murder
Murder
Murder is the unlawful killing, with malice aforethought, of another human being, and generally this state of mind distinguishes murder from other forms of unlawful homicide...
to be tried as an adult, regardless of age.. Once a juvenile has stood trial as an adult and been convicted and sentenced, they are thereafter "handled in every respect as an adult for any subsequent violation of state law."
Many states also require juveniles to be tried as an adult if the defendant has previously been found guilty of an offense that would have been a felony
Felony
A felony is a serious crime in the common law countries. The term originates from English common law where felonies were originally crimes which involved the confiscation of a convicted person's land and goods; other crimes were called misdemeanors...
if it were committed by an adult.
Outcomes
Although the SanctionsSanctions (law)
Sanctions are penalties or other means of enforcement used to provide incentives for obedience with the law, or with rules and regulations. Criminal sanctions can take the form of serious punishment, such as corporal or capital punishment, incarceration, or severe fines...
are more serious in this kind of case than if the juvenile was tried as a child, certain allowances are still made due to the fact the offender is a minor.
This includes a juvenile offender not being forced to serve time in an adult prison, or with adult prisoners. Extreme sanctions such as the death penalty are generally not handed down to minors. Since 1990, only nine countries have executed offenders aged under 18 years at the time of their crime. These are the People's Republic of China
People's Republic of China
China , officially the People's Republic of China , is the most populous country in the world, with over 1.3 billion citizens. Located in East Asia, the country covers approximately 9.6 million square kilometres...
(PRC), Democratic Republic of the Congo
Democratic Republic of the Congo
The Democratic Republic of the Congo is a state located in Central Africa. It is the second largest country in Africa by area and the eleventh largest in the world...
, Iran
Iran
Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
, Nigeria
Nigeria
Nigeria , officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federal constitutional republic comprising 36 states and its Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. The country is located in West Africa and shares land borders with the Republic of Benin in the west, Chad and Cameroon in the east, and Niger in...
, Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
, Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia , commonly known in British English as Saudi Arabia and in Arabic as as-Sa‘ūdiyyah , is the largest state in Western Asia by land area, constituting the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and the second-largest in the Arab World...
, Sudan
Sudan
Sudan , officially the Republic of the Sudan , is a country in North Africa, sometimes considered part of the Middle East politically. It is bordered by Egypt to the north, the Red Sea to the northeast, Eritrea and Ethiopia to the east, South Sudan to the south, the Central African Republic to the...
, the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and Yemen
Yemen
The Republic of Yemen , commonly known as Yemen , is a country located in the Middle East, occupying the southwestern to southern end of the Arabian Peninsula. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to the north, the Red Sea to the west, and Oman to the east....
. Juvenile execution is currently prohibited in the United States following the ruling of the Supreme Court in Roper vs. Simmons.