Juvenile Justice

A Painful Case: Do Parents Need Lawyers for School Disciplinary Hearings?

At 15, Nick Stuban was by all accounts a good kid. He was a Boy Scout and played on the football team at his Fairfax, Va., high school. Nick did well in school. He had never been in any significant trouble. He also helped out at home by caring for…

Jul 1, 2011 8:10 AM CDT

Supreme Court Rules a Youth’s Age Is Relevant in Miranda Analysis

A youth’s age is relevant when deciding whether a person being questioned by police is in “custody,” triggering the need for a Miranda warning, the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled in a 5-4 decision. Justice Sonia Sotomayor wrote the majority opinion (PDF). “It is beyond dispute that children will often…

Jun 16, 2011 2:41 PM CDT

Girl, 5, is Suspect in Homicide of a Boy, 18 Months, Who Drowned in Tub, Police Say

Although apparently too young to be charged with a crime, an unidentified 5-year-old girl is being investigated by Kansas City police as a suspect in what they are calling the homicide of an 18-month-old boy. After initially calling the boy’s death as an accident, authorities began a homicide investigation after…

Jun 10, 2011 12:06 PM CDT

Ohio Supreme Court Strikes Down Statutory Rape Law as Applied to Two Kids Under Age 13

The Ohio Supreme Court has struck down the state’s statutory rape law in a case involving a 12-year-old boy accused of sexual conduct with a boy who was a year younger. The unanimous opinion (PDF) found the law is unconstitutionally vague as applied to sexual conduct between two youths under…

Jun 9, 2011 11:46 AM CDT

New ABA Center on Children and the Law Website, Anti-Bullying Video Aimed at Protecting LGBTQ Kids

In response to increased bullying of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and questioning children, the ABA Center on Children and the Law has launched TheKidsAreListening.org, a website with resources and tips for lawyers on how to interact with LGBTQ kids in foster care. The campaign is a part of the center’s…

Jun 3, 2011 10:18 PM CDT

Wisconsin Supreme Court Upholds Life Sentence for Defendant, 14

A life sentence without the possibility of parole is appropriate for a defendant who was 14 when the alleged murder took place, the Wisconsin Supreme Court ruled today. Omer Ninham allegedly helped throw another boy, Zong Vang, off a parking ramp in 1998, the Associated Press reports. Ninham and four…

May 20, 2011 4:28 PM CDT

High Schooler Faces Disorderly Conduct Charge re Sex-Appeal Ranking of 50 Classmates Posted Online

An unidentified former student at a suburban Chicago high school has been charged with disorderly conduct after allegedly posting online and distributing at Oak Park-River Forest High School earlier this year a list ranking some 50 female classmates based on their physical appearance and claimed sexual activity. After being arrested…

May 10, 2011 10:12 PM CDT

9th Circuit Grants Habeas Relief to Teen Mass Murderer for Second Time

A federal appeals court has reaffirmed its earlier decision to grant habeas corpus relief to a 17-year-old mass murderer whose petition it had been told to reconsider by the U.S. Supreme Court. The San Francisco-based 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, in a 7-3 en banc ruling, (PDF), held Wednesday…

May 6, 2011 7:33 PM CDT

‘Sext’ Education: States Look for Ways to Chastise Teens for Bawdy Cellphone Shots

When school authorities in Wyoming County in northeastern Pennsylvania learned three years ago that high school students were sending nude or scantily clad images of each other via cellphones, they were confronted with one of the country’s first major “sexting” scandals. Among the photos was one of two girls in…

May 1, 2011 7:50 AM CDT

Lawyers for Juvenile Lifers Convicted of Murder Urge Supreme Court to Overturn Sentences

Lawyers for two prisoners sentenced to life in prison for murders committed when they were age 14 are urging the U.S. Supreme Court to accept their cases and strike down their sentences as unconstitutional. The lawyers want the Supreme Court to extend its Graham v. Florida decision that held unconstitutional…

Apr 22, 2011 10:30 AM CDT

Controversial Skateboard Ban on Steep City Streets Criminalizes Being a Kid, Parents Say

In an effort to protect skateboarders and roller skaters from injury, the city of Laguna Beach, Calif., has banned them from some of its steepest streets and established rules of the road. But the new provisions are controversial. Amidst reports—which may be inaccurate—of skateboarders reaching speeds of up to 60…

Apr 11, 2011 5:52 PM CDT

Family Sues Over Arrest of Girl, 10, After School Scuffle

The family of a girl who was arrested for a school scuffle at the age of 10 is suing the New York Police Department for her treatment in custody. The suit filed in Manhattan federal court claims the third-grader was handcuffed last April and taken to the stationhouse, where she…

Apr 4, 2011 1:47 PM CDT

Sixth Grader Charged with Hate Crime in Recess Scarf Incident

A sixth grader in New York City is facing a juvenile hate crime charge after he was accused of trying to rip off a Muslim girl’s headscarf during recess. The boy “was all obnoxious smiles and obscene gestures” as he was brought into court on Thursday, the New York Post…

Apr 1, 2011 1:41 PM CDT

Cops Say Ivy League-Bound Girl, 17, Pulled 9 mm Sig Sauer on Her Own Mom to Force Car Purchase

Corrected: A 17-year-old Florida honor student is being held in juvenile detention over an incident in which she allegedly pulled a 9 mm Sig Sauer on her own mother, pistol-whipped her and ordered her, at gunpoint, to go to a local car dealership and co-sign for a car. Apparently fearful…

Mar 29, 2011 6:35 PM CDT

Autistic Teen’s Police Assault Conviction Worries Parents of Teens with the Disorder

As autism rates continue to soar, parents warn of the likelihood of increasing clashes between police and teens with the disorder who become aggressive when they become frustrated or angry. Autism advocates cite a recent case as an example, according to the Washington Post’s Post Local blog. Earlier this month,…

Mar 18, 2011 10:30 AM CDT