At what age can a minor be prosecuted as an adult for the commission of a crime?
The age of majority for criminal offenses and forfeitures is 17. Wis. Stats. § 938.02(1) provides that ” ‘Adult’ means a person who is 18 years of age or older, except that for purposes of investigating or prosecuting a person who is alleged to have violated any state or federal criminal law or any civil law or municipal ordinance, ‘adult’ means a person who has attained 17 years of age.” See WI Statute § 938.183 “Original adult court jurisdiction for criminal proceedings” for more information regarding age. There are other circumstances in which a person under age 17 could be dealt with in adult court, including: (1) A juvenile age 15 or 16 may be “waived” into adult court by the juvenile court, and (2) there are certain very serious offenses that may be prosecuted in adult court.
