A juvenile has a right to a trial before the judge or a jury whenever they have been charged with a crime. While historically, a juvenile's criminal history would have been sealed, that is no longer true. A juvenile's history of adjudications in Court will now be used against them if they are to commit a crime in the future as either a juvenile or an adult. If a juvenile is adjudicated of a crime, the Court will enter a disposition or sentence. A court may order that a juvenile be placed on probation, perform community service, pay a fine, pay restitution, pay court costs, participate in community programs, be placed in State custody, be removed from the home, or be placed in a locked detention facility.
Juvenile Division
Juvenile Division
Our Juvenile Division handles Juvenile Offenders and Child in Need of Care cases.
Juvenile Offender
A Juvenile Offender is a child between the ages of ten and seventeen who has committed an act considered a crime if they were an adult. A juvenile offender case is filed in Court after a law enforcement report is sent to the County Attorney's Office for review and it is determined that a violation of Kansas law has occurred. After a case has been filed, an attorney is appointed to represent the juvenile. The attorney is responsible for attending all court hearings with the juvenile and protecting the juvenile's legal rights.
Resources:
A list of organizations in the community that provide services and assistance is available here.
Child in Need of Care
A Child in Need of Care case may be filed when a child seventeen years of age or younger has been abused, neglected, abandoned, run away from home, or is truant from school. Cases are referred to the County Attorney's Office for review by DCF, law enforcement, or local school districts to determine whether a Child in Need of Care case will be filed.
A guardian ad litem (GAL) is an attorney who represents the child's best interests. A GAL is appointed by the Court to represent a child who is the subject of a Child in Need of Care case. The GAL is responsible for appearing at all Court hearings to represent the child's interests.
When a Child in Need of Care case is filed, the Court makes orders regarding the child's care, custody, and control. The child may be placed in DCF custody and removed from the parents' home. The Court decides whether there is sufficient evidence to find that a child has been abused, neglected, abandoned, run away, or is truant. If the Court removes the child from a parent, then a reintegration plan is ordered, which lists all of the tasks that the family needs to complete for the Court to determine when a child can be returned to the parent. In rare circumstances, a parent's parental rights may be terminated to a child if the parent fails to complete the reintegration plan and the Court finds by clear and convincing evidence that they are unfit, and their parental rights should be terminated.
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