What is the purpose of the juvenile court system?
Most criminal charges against teenagers under 18 are handled by New Jersey’s juvenile court system. The juvenile courts are set up to meet the special needs of young people charged with crimes; they have no juries, and there are strict rules about releasing minors to parents when it is deemed appropriate. However, juveniles should always have a lawyer to represent them throughout the juvenile justice system. Unlike adult courts, the juvenile courts focus on rehabilitation and education rather than punishment. However, that doesn’t mean New Jersey juvenile charges aren’t very serious. The consequences of a finding of juvenile delinquency can follow a teenager well into adulthood. Juvenile crime is handled in a completely different way than adult crime. Instead of focusing on punishment, the juvenile justice system focuses on the treatment and rehabilitation of the juvenile. There are many different options that are available to deal with juvenile crime. In the juvenile courts, the cases
