The juvenile court has broad discretion to tailor a sentence to the needs of a young offender. This is not to say that juveniles are not sentenced to prision - many states have large juvenile prisons and treatment facilities. It is understood that some juvenile offenders are very dangerous, despite their age, and that incarceration can be appropriate. The specific rights afforded to a juvenile offender vary significantly from state to state. In some states, juveniles have the right to trial by jury, while in others they have no such right.
Juvenile courts tend to be less formal than adult courts.
A juvenile offender who has committed a serious offense may be waived from juvenile court to adult court. Sometimes this is a discretionary waiver, where the prosecutor files a motion to have the young offender tried as an adult. After a hearing, where evidence is presented for and against a waiver, the judge decides whether the offender should be tried as a juvenile or an adult. Sometimes, this is a mandatory waiver, where the law requires the young offender to be tried as an adult. Many states have passed laws allowing prosecutors to file adult charges against juveniles for certain serious offenses, without having to apply for a waiver.