In the United States, there is no age limit for when a person can be charged with a felony. Minors as young as ten years old can be charged with serious crimes. The decision to charge a minor with a felony is up to the prosecutor and depends on the severity of the crime and the child's age. This blog post will discuss what factors prosecutors consider when deciding whether to charge a minor with a...
You must know your rights if you are a minor and have been arrested. You may be feeling scared and overwhelmed, but it is important to remember that you have options. This blog post will discuss the steps you can take to protect yourself after being arrested. We will also talk about what to do if you are contacted by the police or immigration officials. First, it’s important to know that you have...
Some people think that just because a person is young, they cannot find themselves in real trouble. The reality of the situation is that children and minors can often make mistakes that can affect their adult lives. The juvenile justice system is ideally created to help minors learn from their mistakes and change course before going down the wrong path as adults. This means that the court is likely to...
I was reminded this week how the impact of hiring an attorney could last long after a jury has reached a verdict, a settlement has been made, or a case has been dismissed. Many attorneys focus on the "big" cases – serious felonies, federal charges, large civil suits – they forget how important a "little" case can be. My practice consists of both big and little cases, and I like it that way. I love...
Under Utah law, a juvenile is someone who is under the age of 21 and has broken or violated the law – whether the law is local, state, or federal – before their eighteenth birthday. Youths under the age of fourteen are not responsible for criminal conduct or the violation of laws. When a juvenile commits a crime, the case is taken and tried before the juvenile court system, and only under...