Utah Juveniles Tried as Adults

You may have wondered if Utah juveniles can be treated as adults in court, and the answer is: yes, they can, under certain circumstances.

Reasons Utah Juveniles Can be Charged as Adults

• If a 16 or 17 year old juvenile in Utah is accused of murder, his case will automatically be moved to a district court.

• When a 16 or 17 year old Utah juvenile is charged with a felony, and he has received a prior sentence to a secure facility, he will be tried as an adult in district court.

• A 16 or 17 year old juvenile who is charged with one of ten specific felonies will be charged as an adult in juvenile court, and his case will then be moved to district court unless he can convince the juvenile court judge to keep his case in juvenile court. Those ten felonies include any felony violation of:

i) Aggravated arson
ii) Aggravated assault that results in someone being seriously injured
iii) Aggravated kidnapping
iv) Aggravated burglary
v) Aggravated robbery
vi) Aggravated sexual assault
vii) Attempted aggravated murder
viii) Attempted murder
ix) Felony discharge of a firearm
x) Any offense using a dangerous weapon that would be a felony if committed by an adult

• A juvenile can be as young as 14 and still have his case transferred to district court if a prosecutor persuades a juvenile judge that justice will be better served by the change.

Talk to a Utah Juvenile Defense Attorney

It is vital that any juvenile charged as an adult, whether in juvenile or district court, be represented by his own legal counsel. Even though your child may be a young teenager doesn’t mean he won’t be treated as an adult in the eyes of the prosecution and the court. Having a Utah juvenile defense attorney on your child’s side can help insure that he is treated fairly and appropriately.

Call an experienced Utah juvenile defense attorney today.