Paper Example Doctorate 994 words

Juvenile Rights Comparisons of Protections

Last reviewed: February 17, 2013 ~5 min read
Abstract

The realization of succinct justice in the US sometimes depends on the age of an offender. This study focuses on juvenile rights and some exception hat may apply to their situation when they have committed a crime. Juveniles are considered of a lower capacity to response and understanding, unlike adult offenders. Besides, juveniles have an access to cross-examine adverse witnesses, which is not allowed on adult offenders.

Juvenile Rights

Comparisons of protections accorded to juveniles and adult offenders

According to the constitution of the United States of America, juveniles must be accorded constitutional protections that are different from those accorded to adult offenders. For instance, unlike adult offenders, juvenile offenders enjoy protection through rights to counsel, advancement of the charges notice, right to cross-examine adverse witnesses, and other rights like right to remain silent. Such provisions are rare and different when it comes to adult offenders. Juveniles are considered of a lower capacity to response and understanding, unlike adult offenders. For instance, adults can only manage the right to remain silent in the case of other extrinsic forces that could thwart on a sound delivery of information to the court. Juveniles have an access to cross-examine adverse witnesses, something that is not allowed when it comes to adult offenders.

According to the U.S. Supreme Court, the search and seizure protections are supposed to be extended to the Fourth Amendment of the juveniles. According to this amendment, any juvenile who has been arrested without a firm warrant should be accorded a probable cause hearing (Detrick, 1999). The United States of America recognises the deficits and difference between juvenile offenders and adult offenders in the society. It is with no possibility that juveniles access equal rights and protections as adults do. Nonetheless, adult offenders once they have been justified to commit a crime are criminals found guilty. On the side of juveniles, the cause and effect of the offenses committed cannot be given a certainty of approval. Moreover, their peculiar interest should be central to establishing the intent and not the reasonable punishment to the offender.

According to the constitution of the United States of America, juveniles access the Fifth Amendment protection. This protection is accorded to juveniles in order to avoid cases of self-incrimination while court proceedings are being administrated. This accessory does not depend on the non-criminal nature of the proceedings. This is majorly different from adult offenders who have to access basic assurances while proceedings and taking place. The Fifth Amendment recovers stance from the fact that the juvenile's liberty is at stake. Because of this, the amendment should be given counteractive responses that work towards bringing comfort and rightful hearing of the cases. Adults have no liberty of protection as they do juveniles. The essence of the Fifth Amendment is to ensure the rightful stage of the juvenile is not brought under torture or unresponsive circumstances in any case (burden, 1998).

On the other hand, being a juvenile does not necessarily imply that one has a right to access all these accordance. Juveniles have no access to the full panoply of rights accessed by adult offenders. For instance, juveniles do not access the right to be tried by a jury. The jury has no capacity to try alleged juveniles as it tries alleged adult criminals. The constitution does not support this on grounds of delinquents and differences between the cases offenders have committed.

In the United States of American court systems, juvenile courts still proposes juvenile delinquents in aspects that are more paternal other than diagnostic. The adult counterparts cannot access such diagnostic processing as juveniles do. Adults are treated separately unlike juveniles within the jury and the constitutional accordance that assures the difference has been assured to the individuals.

The IV Amendment Search and Seizure Clause

The Fourth Amendment is one of the most prolific archives of constitution litigation in the United States of America. The application to the state through the process of Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment is unique and comprehensive to the American court systems dealing with juveniles. This amendment is depicted by issuance of connotation that protected individuals from unnecessary seizures and searches while in court proceedings. The amendment has much respect to juveniles and juvenile courts since most juveniles do not have to be apprehended under similar conditions and processes as adult offenders. With the coming of the amendment into full force, many juveniles were made to access provisions that were lacking initially. Moreover, adult offenders could access protections against unnecessary searches and seizures while attending court proceedings (Siegel & Welsh, 2012).

Interrogation

You’re 75% through this paper. Sign up to read the full paper.

Sign Up Now — Instant Access Already a member? Log in
130,000+ paper examples AI writing assistant Citation generator Cancel anytime
References
4 sources cited in this paper
  • Bueren, G. V. (1998). The international law on the rights of the child. Dordrecht [u.a.: Nijhoff.
  • Detrick, S. (1999). A commentary on the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. The Hague [u.a.: Nijhoff Pub.
  • Kumar, A. (2006). Human rights and sustainable development. New Delhi: Sarup & Sons.
  • Siegel, L. J., & Welsh, B. (2012). Juvenile delinquency: Theory, practice, and law. Australia: Wadsworth, Cengage Learning.
Cite This Paper
PaperDue. (2013). Juvenile Rights Comparisons of Protections. PaperDue. https://www.paperdue.com/essay/juvenile-rights-comparisons-of-protections-86003

Always verify citation format against your institution’s current style guide requirements.