Do Juveniles Have a Right to Trial by Jury?

The right to trial by jury in the U.S. Constitution belongs only to adults. In 1971, the U.S. Supreme Court held that there's no jury-trial right in juvenile delinquency proceedings. (McKeiver v. Pennsylvania, 403 U.S. 528 (1971).)

Why Don't Juveniles Have the Right to a Jury Trial?

The Supreme Court recognized that juveniles are entitled to certain constitutional rights that apply to adult criminal proceedings, but a jury trial is not one of them. Ultimately, the Court's decision came down to fundamental fairness and whether a jury was needed for accurate factfinding in a case. It decided it was not.

Some of the Court's justices expressed concerns, including apprehension that requiring jury trials would:

• make juvenile proceedings "fully adversary" and destroy "the idealistic prospect of an intimate, informal protective proceeding"
• fail to significantly improve the ability of courts to determine case facts, and
• undermine confidentiality.

Later judicial decisions have questioned some of the original justifications for withholding the jury-trial right from minors. (See People v. Smith, 110 Cal. App. 4th 1072 (2003).)

But despite those reservations, the fact remains that state governments aren't obligated to provide trial by jury in the juvenile justice system. Instead, judges (or judge-equivalents) usually decide juvenile cases.

Can States Have Jury Trials in Juvenile Cases?

Although the Supreme Court said that states don't have to provide jury trials in the juvenile justice system, it allowed for the possibility that they would. (Juveniles tried in the adult system are entitled to juries; see When Juveniles Are Tried in Adult Criminal Court.)

Though the practice is relatively rare, some states offer jury trials in juvenile court. In several of those states, juveniles are permitted juries only in limited circumstances—for instance, when the potential sentence is particularly severe due to various factors.

For More Information

For more information on how the juvenile justice system works, check out our article Juvenile Court: An Overview. Government data and information on juvenile justice issues can also be found on the website of the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP).

If you have questions about a specific case, contact a criminal defense attorney.