Juvenile Justice Case Study

For this assignment, the discussion will be about defining the roles and responsibilities of the juvenile justice system, defense attorney, prosecutor, judge, probation officer, nonjudicial personnel, and summarize the role of the court appointed special advocate (CASA).

1999 National Report Series (1999) states that the juvenile system was founded on the concept of rehabilitation through individualized justice. The focus would be on offenders not offenses, on rehabilitation and not punishment. With that said the juvenile justice system, along with the states, and the affected communities have tried to strike a balance. Many states have added to the clauses of their juvenile codes phrases such as: hold juveniles accountable for criminal behavior;

Supreme Court, and juveniles are afforded this right per due process. Juvenile defense attorneys are a shield against injustice, ensuring that the defense system established for youths operates fairly, accurately, and humanely. Once a juvenile defense attorney is appointed he must overcome the trust issue that many juveniles have with the court system. Once trust is established, the attorney must be able to communicate, which is key, the rules and laws of the court system. Next, after the defense attorney has gone over all the pertinent evidence, an effective strategy is put into place to defend many juvenile’s complex cases. The defense attorney duties are to present the case accurately, monitor any recommended treatment program, and enforce juveniles due process rights (National Juvenile Defender Center, 2012). Next, let’s discuss the role of the prosecutor. The juvenile prosecutor protects the interest of the state or jurisdiction by due process of the law. The juvenile prosecutor brings the state case against the accused juvenile delinquent, protect society, and ensure the child’s rights are not violated. In some ways the juvenile prosecutor is an advocate for the accused and the accuser. The prosecutor duties may involve detention decisions, plea bargaining, initiating appeals, the adjudication phase and waiver decisions (Broderick, 2013). The next two key players up for discussion on their roles and responsibilities is

The job is very complex and they must walk a tight line balancing the juvenile court system and protecting the juvenile as well as the community. Some of the juvenile judge’s responsibilities might include: presiding over pretrial, trials, appeals, and recommendations for a treatment program. Juvenile court judge also presides over trials in which witnesses are questioned or evidence is presented (Bartollas, C., & Miller, S.J., 2011). Next, Abusaid & Newton (2014) states that the probation officer is the coordinator in putting a juvenile delinquent on the right path. The probation officer manages each juvenile case from intake through aftercare, lining up programs, counseling, and treatment facilities, so that the juvenile earns the opportunity to integrate back into the community as a productive citizen. Finally, we will discuss the court appointed special advocate