How to Help Your Child in Juvenile Court
Juvenile courts specialize in handling crimes committed by minors and generally seek to provide minors with counseling and alternative sentencing in an attempt to correct the young offender's behavioral patterns. Helping your minor child through the process requires that you support and actively encourage your child to participate fully in the counseling and alternative sentencing options made available by the juvenile court.
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Instructions
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Meet with the Juvenile Court Counselor who has been assigned to your child's case. While the process can vary from state to state, most juvenile courts provide a counselor who is assigned to your child to guide them through the process, because a large percentage of juvenile cases are heard informally.
Actively participate in the meetings, and convey to your child the importance of completing the punishment (such as community service) ordered by the court. Do not let your desire to protect your child cloud your reasoning when the juvenile counselor lays out the criminal acts your child committed.
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Appear at any hearing ordered by the judge overseeing your child's case. A court may summon both you and your child to a hearing, and failing to appear as a parent (if ordered) can result in you being held in contempt. While you can retain an attorney to appear in court on your child's behalf, the court will either order your presence or look favorably upon your involvement in your child's rehabilitation.
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Comply with the conditions ordered as part of the child's treatment plan. Work with your child to make sure that he completes any community service or restitution by offering transportation and clearing your schedule to have adequate time. Note that you can be held liable and in contempt if you do not provide transportation to assist your child in discharging his court-ordered sentence.
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References
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