As I've developed my criminal practice, one of the most rewarding aspects of my practice is juvenile defense. Why is it so rewarding? In my opinion, many of our courts are overzealous when it comes to juveniles. I know that the probation officers, prosecutors, and judges mean well and feel as if they are teaching a juvenile a lesson by being strict, but when kids are getting tagged as felons for tagging, the system is indeed overzealous.
If I can keep a juvenile from being labeled a felon or being put on probation over some mistake they've made, I feel like I've given that kid a second chance. I'm not saying we shouldn't hold kids responsible for their actions and I'm not saying that serious offenses don't warrant intervention and punishment from the state. My concern is that we are bringing kids into the criminal justice system for things that were previously handled within the home or within the school. I worry about the effect of getting so many kids into the system at such young ages.
Fighting at school is a good example. When I was growing up, if you got into a fight at school, you got detention (at school, not at a juvenile facility) or maybe, suspension. Now, thirteen year-old kids are taken into police custody and end up in court. As a result of their dispositions in court, many of the kids will end up on probation, with a probation officer checking in on them every so often. All of this for a fight at school.
The other problem that I have with the juvenile system is that in many of the cases that I see, it is the parents that should receive punishment, and not the kid. I've seen parents who know their kid is smoking marijuana is his room and yet, the parents do nothing. I've seen kids in court for violations of conditions of probation (curfew is a common one) and it was the parents that allowed the juvenile to violate the condition. Who gets punished? Not the parent who allowed Timmy to walk the streets at 11:00 pm with his friends. It's Timmy, for not being able to refrain from doing something his parents said was OK.
I once had a young girl (14 years-old or so) who was on probation for Possession of Marijuana and she had violated the conditions of her probation. As part of her probation, she had a curfew and a no contact order with her boyfriend. She would consistently violate both conditions. Her boyfriend was 19 and when she violated the conditions of probation, it was because this 19 year-old man would come over and take her out at all times of the night. She would sneak out of her window, act like she was staying at a friend's house, etc.
My problem with the case was - how can you punish a minor for being preyed upon by an adult? Basically, the state kept giving my client harsher and harsher punishment because she kept seeing this man. When I got her as a court appointed client and reviewed the file, I felt as if I was on crazy pills. Was I missing something? Who was the real criminal in all of this and who really deserved the punishment? My argument was that the state was essentially punishing her because she was being unduly influenced by an adult and that the state was holding her responsible for the actions of her adult boyfriend. After all, she's a minor. Can we expect her to refuse the callings of an adult who claims he loves and cares about her? My argument fell on deaf ears in court and once again, she had her probation modified.
I look back on her case and regret that I didn't do more for her. To this day, I truly believe she was a victim, not a criminal. And I failed her.
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3 comments:
Great post! It is truly shocking and downright sad how minor juvenile issues are turned into crimes. Obviously there are some incidents that do rise to the criminal level but most are just kids making mistakes. Punishing them with a criminal record is just plain wrong.
The question is how did we get to this point? I believe that the schools have abdicated much of their responsibilities. Turning it over to the police is much easier than actually helping to resolve the issue. Parents are also to blame to here. First, schools are reluctant to punish students because parents may sue because their precious snowflake is being mistreated. Second, parents need to get a grip and let kids be kids.
Michael, I appreciate the comment.
I agree with you. I think everyone is basically passing the buck when it comes to the kids. The schools aren't sure how to discipline them, so they get the authorities involved. Parents do the same when they call the police on their kids in an attempt to scare them straight or out of desperation.
The problem is that once the police get involved, the ball starts rolling and is hard to stop. Next thing you know, your child is in the system and both the parent and the child have to deal with those consequences.
Questions and comment....
1. If the school does take action - for example, putting the kid in detention - and THEN is turned over to the police, isn't that double jeopardy? Hasn't the state already punished the kid once? Would they even have the ability to do so again at the JP Court?
2. The Penal Cose says fighting with another is an offense - but what about defending onesself when attacked? Is self-defense a defense?
Comment: I see this less as a problem with parents in many circumstances, but instead a problem of small-minded school administrators who with a little bit of power, try to wield it. I also see the school districts trying to paly parent, when in many circumstances they should send the kids to the parents to let the parents handle the problem.
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