The most common punishment for juveniles is probation. Judges in the juvenile system have wide discretion when it comes to sentencing probation. This means that if the juvenile commits another crime within a certain period of time, the penalty will be more severe. In some cases, a juvenile may be sentenced to a short stay in a juvenile detention center. In most cases, juveniles are sentenced to 60 days or less in a detention center, and they may receive additional probation time beyond the time they serve in the detention facility.