Juvenile Felony Defendants in Criminal Courts.

摘要

In 40 of the Nation's largest urban Counties (those referred to in this report), approximately 7,100 juveniles were charged with felonies in adult criminal court during 1998. Nearly two-thirds of the defendants were charged with a violent felony. These findings are from a BJS-sponsored data collection in Baltimore City and 39 urban counties in 19 States. Information was collected on all juvenile defendants who went to criminal court. This report provides aggregate county data. State laws establish the age at which defendants are automatically tried in criminal courts. Defendants at or below this age (the 'upper age of jurisdiction') are handled in juvenile courts unless certain criteria are met. Each State specifies the criteria that must be met for juveniles to be prosecuted in criminal court.