juvenile court

noun

: a court that has special jurisdiction over delinquent and dependent children usually up to the age of 18

Examples of juvenile court in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Teen Sentenced for Killing 'Best Friend' After Man Online Offered $9M for Videos of Murder During a Wednesday hearing in juvenile court, a judge approved a request to charge her as an adult and Gregg was transferred to the Rankin County Adult Detention Center, according to WLBT and WAPT. Kimberlee Speakman, Peoplemag, 21 Mar. 2024 The case stayed in juvenile court for nearly three years before prosecutors won their bid for Vieyra to be tried as an adult. Cindy Chang, Los Angeles Times, 20 Mar. 2024 The 16-year-old who was with him also was charged, but the charges were dismissed after a trial in juvenile court. Kevin Grasha, The Enquirer, 13 Mar. 2024 Initial charges land during freshman year For two days in Hennepin County juvenile court, Boudreau took the witness stand and fielded questions about the darkest moments of her life. USA TODAY, 12 Mar. 2024 Garcia-Jacinto — also accused of an additional, unrelated homicide — is being prosecuted in juvenile court, for now. Nate Gartrell, The Mercury News, 23 Feb. 2024 An attorney with the Attorney General’s Office, Antonio Rivera, agreed in the hearing that the criminal court doesn’t have authority to expressly detain an individual in such a facility, which would have to come from a juvenile court. Darcy Costello, Baltimore Sun, 6 Feb. 2024 Both girls were tried as adults, despite challenges and appeals that extended to the Wisconsin Supreme Court's denial in January 2021 of Geyser's appeal that the case should have been moved to juvenile court. Journal Sentinel, 26 Jan. 2024 The girl is being prosecuted in juvenile court, where the focus is on rehabilitation, not punishment. Kevin Grasha, The Enquirer, 12 Mar. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'juvenile court.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1899, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of juvenile court was in 1899

Dictionary Entries Near juvenile court

Cite this Entry

“Juvenile court.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/juvenile%20court. Accessed 28 Mar. 2024.

Legal Definition

juvenile court

noun
: a court that has jurisdiction over juvenile delinquency proceedings or other civil proceedings involving minors or juveniles compare family court

More from Merriam-Webster on juvenile court

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