Juveniles Tried in Adult Court in California
How can juveniles be tried in adult court?
Children as young as 14 may be tried in California in adult criminal court through any
one of the following mechanisms:



After the prosecutor files a “fitness” petition in juvenile court and a hearing is held
at which the juvenile court judge finds the minor unfit for rehabilitation in the
juvenile system based on five “fitness” criteria.
Direct file in adult criminal court at the discretion of the prosecutor.
Automatic trial as an adult for a small number of aggravated offenses at age 14
or older with a prior offense1.
What are the demographics of juveniles tried as adults?
Of the 395 cases involving juveniles tried as adults and disposed of in adult court in
2014:



370 were males and 25 were females
244 were Hispanic, 96 were black, 37 were white, and 18 were “other” races
10 were 14 years of age; 29 were 15 years of age; 109 were 16 years of age;
and 247 were 17 years of age2
What happens to juveniles convicted in adult criminal court?
If convicted in adult court, juveniles may be punished in the same way as adults, and
may be sentenced to the same amount of time an adult could receive for the same
offense. Juveniles tried as adults may not receive the death penalty,3 but may be
subjected to Life without the Possibility of Parole (LWOP). Youth serving an LWOP
sentence must serve the rest of their life in prison for crimes committed when they were
14 to 17 years of age.4 As of 2015, the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation
reported that there were 310 youth serving LWOP sentences in California for crimes
committed when they were under the age of 18.5 No country other than the United
States permits LWOP sentences for juveniles. The Center for Law and Global Justice6
1
California Welfare and Institutions Code §§ 602(b), 707.
California Department of Justice, Division of California Justice Information Services, Bureau of Criminal
Information and Analysis, Criminal Justice Statistics Center, Juvenile Justice in California, 2014, Table 30,
“Adult Court Disposition, 2014,” pg. 93. (http://ag.ca.gov/cjsc/pubs.php#juvenileJustice).
3 The U.S. Supreme Court struck down the death penalty for persons convicted of crimes committed
when they were juveniles in Roper v. Simmons, 543 U.S. 551 (2005).
4 In May 2010, the U.S. Supreme Court held that the Eighth Amendment prohibits imposition of LWOP on
juvenile offenders who did not commit homicide. Graham v. Florida, 130 S. Ct. 2011 (2010).
5 Marisa Gerber, “California inmate's parole reflects rethinking of life terms for youths, “Los Angeles Time
(Mar. 23, 2015).
6 See, http://www.usfca.edu/law/jlwop/.
2
-1-
and Human Rights Watch7 have done extensive research on juvenile LWOP and have
been involved in legislative efforts to overturn existing laws.
Under state law, juveniles convicted in adult court may be held in adult prison at age 16.
However, due to the suicide of a juvenile at Tehachapi State Prison, California currently
houses youth convicted as adults in the Division of Juvenile Justice (DJJ) until age 18.
Once in the adult system, juveniles tried as adults have minimal opportunities to receive
educational, vocational or other rehabilitative services. In 2015, the California
Rehabilitation Oversight Board reported that the state prison system has only 41,982
slots for academic education, 8,478 slots for career technical education, 6,072 slots for
substance abuse treatment, and 6,885 slots for prison employment programs -- to serve
126,065 inmates.8 There were fewer than 10,000 slots for behavioral treatment
services such as anger management, criminal thinking, family relationships, and victim
impact.9 With a total rehabilitative program capacity of 90,592 slots, many inmates do
not receive even one rehabilitative service during their stay in prison. 10 In Fiscal Year
2014-15, 44% of inmates were released without having received services for any of
their identified needs.11 Moreover, the health and mental health systems in California’s
prison system have been in systemic litigation over deficiencies for the past decade,
with no end in sight.
In contrast, even the facilities designed for deep end youth in the juvenile system – at
the Division of Juvenile Facilities – receive treatment under the framework of an
Integrated Behavior Treatment Model, as well as a range of rehabilitative services and
an individualized education plan designed to fulfill state high school curriculum
requirements.12
How many children are tried as adults in California?
In 2014, there were 188 fitness hearings, out of which 61 youth (33.3%) were found fit
and 122 youth (66.7%) were found unfit for juvenile court treatment.13
7
See, http://www.hrw.org/en/news/2009/05/07/us-end-life-sentences-youth-offenders.
California Office of the Inspector General, California Rehabilitation Oversight Board, “C-Rob Report,”
September 15, 2015), pg. 10.
9 Id.
10 Id.
11 Id., at pg. 27.
12 See, http://www.cdcr.ca.gov/Juvenile_Justice/.
13 California Department of Justice, Division of California Justice Information Services, Bureau of Criminal
Information and Analysis, Criminal Justice Statistics Center, Juvenile Justice in California, 2014, Table 28,
“Fitness Hearings, 2014,” pg. 90. (http://ag.ca.gov/cjsc/pubs.php#juvenileJustice.)
8
-2-
In 2014, there were 474 cases involving juveniles direct filed in adult criminal court.14
Of the 395 juvenile cases disposed of in adult court in 2014:




347 resulted in a conviction;
45 resulted in a dismissal;
Two cases were certified to juvenile court; and
One case resulted in acquittal.15
Of the 347 youth convicted as adults for felonies in 2014:




230 were sent to state prison (with a few of those to DJJ);
12 received a jail sentence;
91 received a jail sentence and probation; and
Eight youth were placed on probation.16
There were also 44 cases involving juveniles tried as adults that were disposed of as
misdemeanors in adult court in 2014, of which 16 received a jail sentence (some with
probation), 22 were sentenced to prison, four received probation, one was dismissed,
and one was certified to juvenile court.17
Prepared by Sue Burrell, Policy Director, PJDC, 1sueburrell@gmail.com
(January 2016)
14
15
16
17
Id., Table 16, “Direct File – Adult Court, 2014,” at pg. 75.
Id., Table 31, “Adult Court Dispositions, 2014,” pg. 94.
Id., Table 33, “Adult Court Dispositions for Felony Offenses, 2014,” pg. 96.
Id., Table 34, “Adult Court Dispositions for Misdemeanor Offenses, 2014,” pg. 99.
-3-