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In recent years, the numbers of juvenile offenders
transferred to adult court has increased dramatically throughout the United
States. In fact, the State of Florida leads the nation in juvenile transfers
to adult criminal court. Further, the Florida courts automatically treat
juveniles who have been charged with life or capital felonies as adults. If a
juvenile is convicted of first degree murder in Florida, a mandatory life
without parole prison sentence is imposed. Florida sentenced the youngest
ever juvenile offender to life in prison when he was convicted of a murder that
allegedly occurred at age twelve. |
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Transfer of juveniles to adult court is typically reserved
for the most serious and violent offenders. Dr. Weiss specializes in these
direct file juvenile evaluations. She has worked on the following types of
cases in which juveniles have been transferred to adult court: |
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Child on Child Homicide |
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School Shootings and Stabbings |
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Bully Victims who Murder their Bully |
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Juvenile Offenders who have Killed Abusive Family Members |
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Juvenile Girls Involved in Murders with their Abusive
Partners |
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Gang Rapes Occurring on School Grounds |
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This trend of transferring juveniles to adult court raises a
whole host of new questions for the legal system. For example: |
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Does a juvenile transferred to adult court have the
intellectual ability and/or developmental maturity to navigate his way
through the adult legal system? |
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Was a juvenile who was questioned by police without an
attorney or parent present competent to waive his Miranda rights? |
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Is the juvenile or adult criminal justice system best
equipped to address a juvenile offender’s mental health needs? |
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How will a juvenile awaiting trial as an adult be managed
in an adult jail? |
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What are the effects of adult incarceration on a juvenile? |
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Is a juvenile murderer at risk for committing future
violent acts? |
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