Roughly 115 years ago, in Cook County, Illinois, the first juvenile court was established. As of 2011, there were a total of over one million juvenile cases in the U.S. Before juvenile courts were established, all juveniles, despite their age, were tried as adults, meaning that they received the same trial and sentencing that any other adult would. Prior to the new court system, cases regarding minors, were very relaxed and unprofessional. This proposed many problems with in the justice system, which is what caused the establishment of the first juvenile court. With the juvenile crime rate plummeting, the question of whether or not juvenile courts should be continued, comes up. The ultimate goal of the juvenile court, today, is to rehabilitate rather than punish. In order to this theory to exist and happen, juvenile courts cannot be dismantled. Granted, I’m sure there are many good reasons that it would be beneficial to eliminated juvenile courts, but I believe that it is important for the juvenile court to be continued. These courts lessen the risk of minors being put in adult prisons and jails, allows for rehabilitation to be offered, and saves minors grief in adulthood. …show more content…
Juvenile court is “a court of law responsible for the trial or legal supervision of children under a specified age”. In the United States, anyone under the age of eighteen is considered a juvenile, but, depending on the severity of the crime, anyone above the age of fourteen can be tried as an adult, or in criminal court. Juvenile Justice is “the area of criminal law applicable to persons not old enough to be held responsible for criminal acts”. The last term that I will explain is the term “delinquent”. By this term, I mean “(typically of a young person or that person's behavior) showing or characterized by a tendency to commit crime, particularly minor