Your son or daughter will be a ward of court when they commit a felony or a misdemeanor in Bakersfield. The California delinquency system will handle the matter, but there are exceptions. The prosecution team can charge your child as an adult, depending on their criminal record and the severity of the alleged crime. At the California Criminal Lawyer Group, we understand that your children need a robust defense. The penalties will be more severe and have life-altering consequences that can affect their education, employment, and future. Our legal team can sit down with you to explain the legal process comprehensively so you can know the steps to take to protect your child's rights and future.

Can a Juvenile Be Charged as an Adult?

The law considers anyone below 18 a minor.

California law does not prosecute minors the same way as adults. Nevertheless, under specific scenarios, children could be charged as adults.

The main difference between juvenile and adult courts is how cases are handled. The delinquency court aims to rehabilitate young offenders, allowing them to mend their ways and be productive, responsible citizens. On the other hand, an adult court seeks to punish the defendant.

If your baby is under criminal prosecution, enlisting the services of a proven and skilled attorney is crucial.

Understanding California Proposition 21

Proposition 21, signed into law in 2000, caused a major shift in how the judicial system handles juvenile crimes. It expanded the variety of offenses for which a child can be prosecuted as an adult, giving the prosecution more power to determine whether to charge a child in a California adult court. Prop. 21 also reduced the minimum age at which a child might be prosecuted as a grown-up to 14 and increased punishment for gang-affiliated offenses. Hence, the law subjected more youths in California to adult sentences.

Proposition 57

Proposition 57, enacted in 2016, reversed some statutes of Prop. 21. It removed the prosecutor's discretion to file charges against a juvenile directly. Instead, a judge should schedule a hearing in juvenile court to decide whether to send the child to adult court.

The hearing will give the defense lawyer an additional chance to defend against transferring the child to adult court. Navigating these judicial processes is complex, but with the assistance of your attorney, your family can handle the case effectively, professionally, and appropriately.

Senate Bill 1391

According to SB 1391, the District Attorney (D.A.) can bring a motion to transfer a juvenile older than 16 from the delinquency justice system to the adult criminal judicial system.

Nevertheless, the law bans the prosecution of children under 16 in adult criminal courts, except if the minor committed a crime that was discovered until they reached the age of majority.

SB 1391 replaced Prop. 21 and was passed in 2018. The new law allows the judge to send a juvenile to the adult criminal judicial system for adjudication. The following statements should be actual for the transfer to be effective:

  • The child must be above 16.
  • The child violated the law before turning 16, but the police did not arrest them until they turned 18.
  • There is enough evidence for the transfer.

SB 1391 bans the prosecution of young offenders under 16 in adult criminal court, except if the delinquent system is inadequate for the minor’s rehabilitation. When the judge determines the minor will not benefit from the delinquency system, they will move them to the adult court.

Juvenile Criminal Offenses Tried in Adult Court

The prosecution can charge a child at least 16 as an adult if accused of the following offenses:

  • Robbery.
  • Sodomy by force.
  • Murder.
  • Rape.
  • Kidnapping for ransom.
  • Assault with a gun or destructive device.
  • Forcible sexual penetration.
  • Attempted murder.
  • Drive by shooting.
  • Compounding, selling, or manufacturing a controlled substance.
  • Kidnapping for robbery.
  • Oral copulation using violence, force, or threats of causing great bodily harm.
  • Aggravated mayhem.
  • Torture.
  • Carjacking.
  • A lascivious act on a minor below 14 using violence, force, or threats of inflicting physical harm.
  • Kidnapping while carjacking.
  • Arson resulting in significant physical harm.
  • Voluntary manslaughter.

Crimes that Automatically Cause a Juvenile to Face an Adult Criminal Judicial System

The Welfare and Institution Code outlines crimes for which children can automatically be eligible for trial in adult court. The offenses include murder under distinctive conditions if the prosecution proves the child took another’s life.

Moreover, if the prosecutor thinks a child committed a sex offense as well as other aggravating circumstances, they can charge them as an adult. These sex crimes include:

  • Rape by fear of causing bodily harm, coercion, menace, violence, or force.
  • Sodomy by fear of causing bodily harm, coercion, menace, violence, or force.
  • Sexual penetration by fear of causing bodily harm, coercion, menace, violence, or force.
  • Oral copulation by fear of causing bodily harm, coercion, menace, violence, or force.

Benefits and Cons of Transferring to the California Adult Criminal Justice System

Sometimes, it is beneficial for a child to face the adult criminal judicial system. Here are some of these reasons:

  • Juries in an adult court could be sympathetic to the child.
  • Children have the constitutional right to trial by a jury when tried in adult court.
  • In jurisdictions with a backlog of cases and crowded jails, the California court could be inclined to resolve the child’s case more rapidly and impose more lenient penalties.

On the other hand, some cons of the prosecutor charging your child as an adult are as follows:

  • Adult court judges have limited scopes of judicial punishment and treatment options, which are at the disposal of the judges at the juvenile court, like imposing ordering counseling or curfews.
  • The minor is subjected to more severe penalties.
  • A minor’s conviction in a California adult court has more societal stigma than in a juvenile court.
  • The juvenile could have to spend time in an adult prison instead of juvenile detention facilities.
  • An adult criminal history is more challenging to seal than a juvenile criminal record.

The Juvenile Court Process

Here is what to expect with the California delinquency criminal process:

  1. Your Child’s Arrest

Following your child’s arrest, law enforcement agents have the following options:

  • Release the child without taking further action.
  • Refer the juvenile’s case to the California district attorney.
  • Release the youth with directives to present themselves to a police station with a guardian.
  • A police notice to have an audience with a probation officer.

  1. Juvenile Petition

The initial court process involves a probationary officer or the D.A.’s office filing a petition. Many D.A. offices have dedicated departments for handling children's cases.

A probation officer can choose from two juvenile petitions available for juvenile cases. Probation could file a 601 petition dealing with behavior that addresses unlawful behavior, like skipping school, running away, or violating a curfew. If the juvenile petition is substantiated, the child becomes a status offender.

The D.A. will bring a 602 petition if the youth committed a crime. It comprises felony and misdemeanor-level crimes. If the juvenile petition is substantiated, the court will render the child delinquent.

  1. Detention Hearing

During the detention hearing, your child appears before a juvenile judge. The hearing is identical to a criminal defendant’s court arraignment (initial court proceeding).

During the hearing, the juvenile judge will decide whether the child should stay in a juvenile hall as the case is ongoing. Young offenders do not have a legal right to bail.

Nevertheless, the court can release your child into your custody under stern conditions. The terms can include a requirement to wear a monitoring device or a stringent curfew supervised by the California Probation Department.

  1. Juvenile Fitness Hearing

During this hearing, the judge observes certain factors before giving a verdict. For instance, they can consider the nature of the alleged offense to determine whether rehabilitative services will benefit your child. If the court does not foresee the possibility of the minor benefiting from rehabilitative juvenile services, it will transfer them to adult court. The prosecution will initiate the transfer proceeding if:

  • The minor is at least 16, and they have committed a felony.
  • The child was fourteen or fifteen when the prosecutor filed the accusations.

Youths 16 and older accused of engaging in criminal activity violating Section 707b can be subject to a transfer hearing. Before making the decision, the judge will consider the following:

  • Whether the delinquency judicial system could rehabilitate the child before the California juvenile court’s jurisdiction expires.
  • The success of previous efforts to rehabilitate the youth.
  • The criminal sophistication demonstrated by the child.
  • The circumstances and severity of their crimes alleged in the petition.
  • The minor’s past delinquent history.

The steps involved in your minor’s transfer hearing or fitness hearing include the following:

Probation Officer Report

The law requires the probation department to submit a report about your child’s case. The report addresses certain facets of your minor. Typically, the report is prepared following the filing of the juvenile transfer hearing, and the court uses it to determine a minor’s case. The report includes the following:

  1. Alleged crime.
  2. The child’s delinquent history.
  3. The family’s contact with the California justice system.
  4. Community members who are willing to assist the minor.
  5. Your minor’s interests and future.
  6. Your child’s behavioral pattern and social history.
  7. School attendance and accomplishments.

The report enables the juvenile judge to determine whether they should try the case in adult court.

The Probation Official Interview

Since the judge esteems the officer’s report, the minor should be properly prepared to answer the probation department’s questions. Your skilled defense lawyer should provide the young offender with the usual questions and guidelines. The legal expert should also advise the minor on how to respond to the officer’s questions.

During their interview, the youth can access an interpreter if they cannot understand the court’s language. As a parent, dedicating time to your baby's practice before their interview is advisable.

Case Preparation

As a guardian, you should collaborate with your minor’s lawyer to collect information about your child’s:

  1. Medical records.
  2. School records.
  3. Your minor’s employment history.
  4. Family records.
  5. Disability records, if any.
  6. Qualifications for special needs education.
  7. Any certificates earned.

Participatory Defense

In participatory defense, you can contest the motion to charge your minor in a California juvenile court instead of an adult court. During the participatory hearing, you and a relative or any community member can determine how well you can contest the matter for the child’s benefit. The crucial thing is to have your baby’s lawyer assist with the legal process.

The Juvenile Hearing Motion

During the hearing, the juvenile judge considers the report presented by the probationary official. The judge uses the other party’s evidence to determine your child’s interests.

At the juvenile hearing, both parties present their proof. At this phase, the judge should verify that your minor is guilty of an offense, and their case should be tried in adult court. Your minor’s lawyer, at this phase, will contest the matter professionally to ensure your child’s case remains in juvenile court.

Helpful tips during the juvenile hearing include the following:

  1. Attorney representation.
  2. Understanding the court’s layout.
  3. Preparing to respond to the questions.
  4. Reporting early to juvenile court.
  5. Learning how to stay calm at the hearing.
  6. Utilizing the defense strategies at the court proceeding.

Transfer Hearing Outcome

If the juvenile court deems your minor fit to be charged in a juvenile court, they will stay in the juvenile legal system. If the judge decides to send your child to California adult court, the hearings will continue immediately. The lawyer representing your minor will use any legal grounds to persuade the court to allow an appeal.

  1. Pre-trial Hearings

Before an adjudication hearing, there could be one or more pre-trial hearings. The D.A. and your minor’s attorney can exchange discovery and discuss potential dispositions at these juvenile hearings. The judge will consider the parties' motions and render rulings.

  1. Juvenile Adjudication

The adjudication hearing, also called a jurisdiction hearing, is a juvenile trial whereby the D.A. would have to substantiate the charges beyond a reasonable doubt. There is no trial by jury in juvenile court, and a juvenile court judge handles the matter. Similar evidence provisions in adult court will apply, and the child is entitled to the same rights and legal protections.

  1. Disposition Hearing

Suppose the court proves the youth violated the law. In that case, the final step in the California juvenile court process is a disposition hearing, where the judge determines your child’s punishment.

Three Strikes Law

A juvenile crime is a strike per the Three Strikes law when it is among the offenses outlined in WIC 707b if your child is a ward of the court and over 16 years old.

The three strikes law is a sentencing scheme that increases the incarceration time of repeat offenders. The idea is that previous strike convictions deserve reduced custody credits and longer sentences.

Your child becomes a second striker if they have one strike on their criminal record, and then the prosecutor charges them with a felony. In this case, they will serve double the maximum sentence for the subsequent crime.

Your young child is a third striker if they have two previous convictions for violent or serious felonies and the prosecutor subsequently charges them with another violent or serious felony. They will face a sentence of 25 years to life.

Plea Bargaining Your Child’s Juvenile Strikes

Your juvenile delinquency defense attorney can negotiate the charges with the prosecution. Like in adult court, criminal charges cannot be dismissed or added without the prosecutor’s consent.

Depending on the jurisdiction, plea bargain negotiations can include the judge. Your child is entitled to the same judge who determined their disposition.

A plea bargain is a negotiation between the prosecutor and the defense attorney for the young offender to enter a guilty or no-contest plea in return for lenient penalties or a reduction of charges.

Plea bargains are popular with the prosecution because they mean not having to prosecute the case, saving resources and time. For your lawyer, it means keeping your child from more severe penalties, like incarceration.

The advantages of accepting a plea bargain offer are many, including the following:

  • Avoid serving time and not living with the trauma or stigma linked to incarceration.
  • It offers certainty about the criminal case’s outcome.
  • Reduce the severity of charges — Lesser charges, like a California misdemeanor, carry fewer collateral penalties and will not severely affect future convictions.
  • Avoid publicity — As a parent, you want to keep the matter quiet without publicizing the case to save your child’s reputation.
  • Resolves the legal matter faster.

Despite the advantages of plea bargaining, deciding whether accepting the prosecutor’s offer is the best path for your child’s case can take effort and time. Your defense attorney can give you insight into the chances of prevailing at trial and how the plea compares to the consequences of a judgment against you at trial.

Is Deferred Entry of Judgment Available for Juvenile Strikes?

DEJ is available to first-time non-violent juvenile felony offenders. That means it is unavailable if your child is guilty of committing a WIC 707b crime.

Moreover, it is unavailable to young offenders who have contested their criminal charges at a jurisdictional court hearing. It applies even when the judge did not sustain the WIC 707b charges.

Can Juvenile Strikes be Removed?

Per WIC 782, a judge can dismiss a petition following a true finding. This section is a general dismissal statute. A juvenile strike is identical to the Romero motion per California Penal Code Section 1385 PC.

PC 1385 allows judges to dismiss sentencing enhancements and criminal charges in the interest of justice. The provision relieves the defendant of punishment or prosecution when considered unnecessary and unfair.

Your child can seal their juvenile criminal records under 781. Unless they seal, a judge can use a previous juvenile conviction to enhance penalties in adult court.

Potential Penalties for Crime that Young Offenders are Tried as Adults

Per WIC 782, a judge can dismiss a petition following a true finding. This section is a general dismissal statute. A juvenile strike is identical to the Romero motion per California Penal Code Section 1385 PC.

PC 1385 allows judges to dismiss sentencing enhancements and criminal charges in the interest of justice. The provision relieves the defendant of punishment or prosecution when considered unnecessary and unfair.

Potential Penalties for Crime that Young Offenders are Tried as Adults

After the court determines that it will try your child in an adult court, you will face the potential penalties related to the alleged offense under WIC 707b. These penalties include the following:

Murder Under PC 187

Murder penalties depend on whether the prosecutor charges your child with first-degree murder or second-degree murder.

First-degree murder entails premeditated killing, and felony murder is when a person dies while committing robbery, rape, or carjacking. It attracts 25 years in prison or life imprisonment.

Second-degree murder does not involve premeditation. It carries fifteen years in prison.

Sodomy under PC 286

Sodomy is contact between an anus and a penis. PC 286 makes it illegal when the crime is:

  • Achieved through threats, fear, force or.
  • Committed with a child.

It is a wobbler. A misdemeanor conviction attracts a year in jail, while a felony is punishable by at least ten years in state prison.

California Kidnapping

Simple kidnapping is a California felony carrying a maximum of eight years in prison.

Aggravated kidnapping is a felony that can subject your child to a sentence of five years to life, depending on the case facts.

Rape Penalties

Rape is a felony that carries a lifetime sex offender registration and up to eight years in state prison.

The judge could enhance your child's sentence by an additional five years in prison if the alleged victim sustained great bodily injuries.

Arson Law

A PC 451 conviction is a felony. The specific penalties for this crime depend on the type of asset burnt and whether anybody sustained an injury.

The potential maximum prison sentences for arson are as follows:

  • Three years for arson of personal assets.
  • Six years for arson of forest land or structure.
  • Nine years if your child’s conduct resulted in great bodily injuries.

Contact a Juvenile Delinquency Defense Attorney Near Me

Your child can face California’s adult criminal judicial system if they are charged with severe offenses like murder, rape, or arson. In this case, the court will transfer their case to adult court for trial, and they will be subjected to the adult criminal justice process and penalties related to the crime. These penalties can negatively affect your child’s future, reputation, and education, and without skilled legal representation, the minor has reduced chances of improving their case outcome.

California Criminal Lawyer Group has a personal, vested interest in all clients. We take a result-driven and empathetic approach to juvenile cases. We can thoroughly review the evidence against your child, interview witnesses, and challenge any violation of your child’s constitutional rights. Please contact our Bakersfield legal office at 661-750-8230 to discuss your child’s case and explore the most effective defense strategy.