As Plato once said, “Let parents bequeath to their children not riches, but the spirit of reverence”. This saying should be upheld in today’s age more than ever, as it seems that children nowadays are not afraid of any kind of punishment or retaliation, for the fact that they can’t be touched because of their rights, which, in the first place, they don’t even understand.
Changing Parenting Dynamics in the Modern Age
When we were young, our parents taught us that we should respect other people and anything around us. However, nowadays, parents become busier working to earn more to be able to provide for their families’ needs in these times of high inflation rates and recessions. Thus, the IPAD and the internet became the parents of children. And we know that not all we see on the internet is good examples for children and might even cause them to do bad things.
Factors Contributing to Juvenile Delinquency
According to recent studies, juvenile delinquency is often a result of several factors that influence the behavior of children to commit crimes. It is important to know that no child is born with criminal tendencies. However, due to factors such as lack of parental care, psychological trauma, violence, living in the streets, social media, and peer pressure, some children can commit crimes such as minor in possession, DUI, robbery, and even heinous crimes like rape and murder, which are often committed by adults. Is your child arrested for a serious crime? Check out Colorado bail bonds for a way to get them temporarily out of custody and into the warmth of your home.
Minimum Age of Criminal Responsibility in Colorado
Did you know that in Colorado, the minimum age before a juvenile can be charged under Colorado’s Juvenile Court system is ten years old? Thus, if an individual is between the ages of ten and eighteen years old, they are considered to be juvenile and will be tried in Juvenile court. If a child, however, has been charged before the minimum age of ten, the Petition, which is the charging document equivalent in Juvenile court, will be tagged as “fatally defective,” and the matter will be dismissed.
How the Juvenile Court Process Works
The Juvenile court process is somewhat lenient and is wholly separate from the adult criminal court, and operates under different policies and procedures. Upon the arrest of law enforcement officers, they will first need to assess the seriousness of the crime committed. For a simple offense, depending on the decision of the authorities, a minor will be issued a citation, and the parents will appear in court on behalf of the minor. However, more serious crimes will lead to detention in Juvenile hall until such time that they need to appear in court. The biggest difference between Juvenile and adult criminal cases is that Juveniles are not given the option to post bail for temporary release, unlike in adult court. They don’t have the same privilege as an adult to ask for help from a Colorado bondsman and enjoy temporary release through Colorado bail bonds. Thus, juveniles need to remain in custody until their detention hearing if a more serious crime has been committed.
Comparing Juvenile and Adult Penalties in Colorado
If you’re familiar with the adult criminal court, the penalty will usually depend on the crime committed. As there are already laws established for each crime, it is easier to identify the punishment that the individual will be sentenced to for each offense. For instance, in Colorado, if a person is charged with sexual harassment, they could either fall under unlawful sexual contact, which is usually a Class 1 misdemeanor and can, in turn, carry convictions that result in 364 days in jail and/or a fine up to $1,000. However, if the harassment involves threat, force, and intimidation, and unlawful sexual contact, this is already considered a Class 4 felony, which can result in $2,000 to $500,000 in fines and 2 to 8 years in prison. In this case, the adult criminal court has in place certain penalties that a person could be charged for the offense, but they also have the chance to call up a Colorado bondsman to help them avail of Colorado bail bonds, which could result in their temporary release from jail. However, there are some instances when the juvenile court judge can decide to release a minor from Juvenile hall while the case is ongoing. In this case, if you’re a parent and your child has been granted bail, you can check out bail bonds Colorado and ask the experts for help.
Delinquent Acts vs. Criminal Acts in Juvenile Court
In Juvenile court, they are prosecuted based on committing “delinquent acts” and not a “criminal act” per se. When a minor appears in court, they are not subject to a public trial with a jury like in adult court; instead, they will face an adjudication hearing, which will let the judge decide if the minor will be ruled as a delinquent or not based on the evidence presented in court. If a juvenile has been determined to be a delinquent, the judge will then decide on the approach to handling the outcome of the hearing. In most cases, the judge will provide alternative sentences to juveniles who have been presumed guilty of delinquent acts to keep them out of jail. This could include diversionary programs, parole, community service, therapy, fines, and probation, which are much more lenient than the adult court system. The purpose of this is to ensure that the juvenile delinquents will be rehabilitated and be able to reform in the hopes that they will not be involved in criminal activities when they reach adulthood.
When Juveniles Are Tried as Adults
However, in some serious cases, though the offender is minor or juvenile, they can be transferred for trial as an adult in district court if they committed a crime or offense under a certain criterion, most particularly felonies and grave offenses. For instance, if a minor at the age of 14 committed murder or attempted murder and has probable cause that they have indeed committed the offense, they will have to face a judge in adult court. In this case, they can also face harsher punishments and penalties such as imprisonment and fines. As the juvenile is treated as an adult, they will also be subject to the policies and procedures under the adult court system. Given this, they’re eligible for bail or Colorado bail bonds just like any other adult. Thus, it is best to look up bail bonds Colorado and how they can help for the temporary release of a juvenile tried in adult court.
