Перевод

juvenile delinquency punishments	быть приговоренным
trace back	придавать особое значение
productive members of the family	детская беспризорность
death penalty	проводить расследование и выносить приговор
be sentenced	подростки
to target	расцениваться
house of refuge	суд первой инстанции
emphasize	подсудимый, ответчик
widespread	быть вовлеченным
juvenile abandonment	несовершеннолетний правонарушитель
amenable	ограниченный срок тюремного заключения
to try and pass judgments	обвиняемый в преступлении
commit a crime	подыскивать
adolescents	подсудимый
the age of majority	активный член семьи
be treated	брать начало
gang-related acts	поддающийся
trial court	совершить преступление
defendant	дело о делинквентном поведении несовершеннолетнего
minor	лицо, не являющееся родственником
be involved	ставить цель
young offenders	широко распространенный
to sentence	преступление, совершенное организованной группой несовершеннолетних
limited maximum sentences	несовершеннолетний
to seek out	получить приговор
foster homes	наказание малолетних преступников
ward of the court	приют
case of delinquency	совершеннолетие
a non-parental person	смертельный приговор
case of dependency	дело об опекунстве
charged with a crime	приемная семья

Juvenile delinquency punishments trace back to the Middle Ages when crimes were severely punished by the Church. Throughout the 17th and 18th centuries, few legal differences existed between children and adults. Children as young as six and seven years were considered productive members of the family and their labor contributed to family income. In court, children as young as seven were treated as adults and could receive the death penalty.

Early debates questioned whether there should be a separate legal system for punishing juveniles, or if juveniles should be sentenced in the same manner as adults.

With the changing demographic, social and economic context of the 19th century resulting largely from industrialization, “the social construction of childhood...as a period of dependency and exclusion from the adult world” was institutionalized.

Early programs targeting juvenile delinquency included: “houses of refuge”, which emphasized moral rehabilitation; “reform schools”, which had widespread reputations for mistreatment of the children living there; and “child saving organizations”, social charity agencies dedicated to reforming poor and delinquent children.  The application of parens patrea was restricted to protecting the interests of children.

One of the first juvenile courts provided a legal distinction between juvenile abandonment and crime. “The best interests of the child” meant that juveniles were generally more amenable to rehabilitation than adult criminals. This new application of parens patrea and the development of a separate juvenile court formed the foundation for the modern juvenile justice system.

A juvenile court (or young offender's court) is a tribunal having special authority to try and pass judgments for crimes committed by children or adolescents who have not attained the age of majority.

In most modern legal systems, children and adolescents who commit a crime are treated differently from legal adults who have committed the same crime.

In many jurisdictions, such as in 44 states of the United States, severe offenses, such as murder and gang-related acts, are treated the same as crimes committed by adults even for minors (though particularly young offenders may still not be treatable as adults.)

Juvenile court is a special court or department of a trial court which deals with under-age defendants charged with crimes or who are neglected or out of the control of their parents. The normal age of these defendants is under 18, but juvenile court does not have jurisdiction in cases in which minors are charged as adults. The procedure in juvenile court is not always adversarial, although the minor is entitled to legal representation by a lawyer. Parents or social workers and probation officers may be involved in the process to achieve positive results and save the minor from involvement in future crimes. However, serious crimes and repeated offenses can result in sentencing juvenile offenders to prison, with transfer to state prison upon reaching adulthood with limited maximum sentences, often until the age of 18, 21, 23 or 25. Where parental neglect or loss of control is a problem, the juvenile court may seek out foster homes for the juvenile, treating the child as a ward of the court.

A juvenile court handles case of delinquency and dependency. Delinquency refers to crimes committed by minors, and dependency includes cases where a non-parental person is chosen to care for a minor.