Everyone makes mistakes and sometimes those mistakes have legal consequences. For juvenile youth offenders, there are generally two types of consequences they can potentially face – those that involve incarceration or non-incarceration, such as probation. Of course, there are different types of sentencing options that fall under these two vast umbrellas. If your child was recently arrested, you must hire an experienced criminal defense attorney to protect their future and allow them to move past this mistake.
Sentencing Options that Involve Incarceration
Once a juvenile is adjudicated as a delinquent, the court can order incarceration as a penalty. However, the options available to juvenile offenders differ greatly compared to adult offenders.
Here are some of the incarceration sentencing options for juveniles:
- House arrest: A judge can order a juvenile offender to stay at home, barring a few exceptions, such as work or school. This is also known as home confinement.
- Placement in a group or foster home: If the judge believes that a minor’s current living situation contributed to the crime committed, he or she might order the minor to live with another relative or in a foster or group home.
- Placement in a juvenile detention facility: Generally, these types of facilities are only meant for short-term stays.
- Secured juvenile facility: Unlike a detention facility, these types of facilities are designed for more long-term stays and are sometimes referred to as camps. Juveniles can be sentenced to a secured facility for months or even years.
- Jail for adults: It is also possible for a judge to send a juvenile offender to an adult facility, such as state prison or county jail.
- Both juvenile and adult jail: A judge might also send a delinquent juvenile to a juvenile facility and later transfer them to an adult jail once they reach the age of majority. This type of sentence is known as a blended sentence.
Sentencing Options that do not Involve Incarceration
Not all sentencing options for juvenile delinquents involve incarceration.
Here are some of the non-incarceration sentencing options for juveniles:
- Counseling: As part of a disposition order, a judge might make it a requirement for a juvenile to attend counseling.
- Verbal warning: For less serious offenses, a juvenile might simply receive a verbal warning from a judge.
- Community service: A juvenile delinquent might also be required to perform community service for a certain amount of hours.
- Probation: After a delinquency filing, a judge might order a juvenile to enter probation, which will restrict the freedom and activities the minor is permitted to engage in. However, the specific terms of a minor’s probation will vary from case to case.
- Electronic Monitoring: A judge might order a juvenile to wear a bracelet to verify his or her location at all times.
Additionally, it is possible for a judge to order a combination of the aforementioned options. As such a juvenile delinquent can potentially be ordered to attend counseling, perform community service, and pay a fine as a penalty for his or her offense.
Contact a Fierce Juvenile Crimes Attorney Today!
If your child is facing criminal charges, you need to do what you can to protect his or her future to ensure this mistake does not define your child’s entire life. At the Law Office of Steven Fine, our criminal defense attorney has over two decades of experience and an extensive amount of knowledge to help you fight for your child’s rights, freedom, and future. The stakes are too high to settle for anything less than the best.
Contact our office today at (312) 436-0638 to schedule a complimentary case review with our trusted attorney. Our office is available 24/7 to answer your call.
