Juveniles may be prosecuted in criminal court under certain circumstances, and State law determines the conditions under which youth charged with a criminal law violation can be processed in the criminal, rather than the juvenile, justice system. The legal mechanisms for transferring juveniles from the juvenile to the criminal justice system differ from State to State and may mandate criminal court processing for juveniles or leave it to the discretion of specific justice system officials. These mechanisms vary in the degree of discretion involved in the transfer decision and are categorized according to who makes the decision. Under judicial waiver provisions, the juvenile court judge is the decisionmaker. Judicial waiver provisions are generally limited by age and offense criteria and typically include criteria relating to the juvenile s potential for rehabilitation.
Some provisions make the waiver decision entirely discretionary.
Other provisions establish a presumption in favor of waiver, reducing judicial discretion. And some provisions make waiver mandatory under certain age and offense conditions, completely removing judicial discretion. Under statutory exclusion provisions, legislatures have decided that certain young offenders are outside the jurisdiction of the juvenile justice system. Most statutory exclusion provisions target serious offenses and older youth. Concurrent jurisdiction provisions give prosecutors the discretion to file certain cases in juvenile or criminal court.