Before the establishment of the juvenile system, children were treated the same as adults in terms of criminal processing. Children were considered "imperfect adults" or "adults in miniature."
An essential component to understanding the juvenile justice system is the concept of parens patriae: a philosophical perspective that recognizes that the state has both the right and the obligation to intervene on behalf of its citizens in the case of some impairment or impediment such as mental incompetence or in the case of juveniles, age, and immaturity.
Here you will find other concepts used in the criminal justice system, but different concepts applied when is a juvenile or adult:
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