| In this high paced and sometimes detached | | | | may numb the child's senses internally and he |
| world, many children are often neglected by | | | | may often withdraw within himself after |
| parents and society and left to fend for | | | | having committing the crime. In this case the |
| themselves. These kids fall through the | | | | role of the lawyer is of utmost importance: |
| cracks of society and feel left out of their | | | | |
| peer groups. The unfortunate result is that | | | | * The lawyer must have a special ability to |
| many often start running with the wrong group | | | | find his way into the deepest point of the |
| and running afoul of the law. | | | | child's heart and mind. |
| | | | |
| When a child between the ages of ten and | | | | * Juvenile lawyers are specially trained to |
| eighteen commits a crime, the act is | | | | bring to light the background and |
| described in legal term as delinquency and | | | | circumstances that prompted the child to |
| the matter is resolved through the | | | | commit crime. |
| intervention of the juvenile court. | | | | |
| | | | * In an effort to bring the child out of his |
| Because of the tenderness of the child's age, | | | | shell and to open up, the lawyer can seek the |
| these cases are treated and resolved | | | | help of doctors and child psychiatrists. This |
| differently. The lawyer also cannot afford to | | | | helps the lawyer to gather the missing links |
| treat these juvenile delinquency cases like | | | | in order to put all the pieces of the puzzles |
| he or she would iany other usual crime case | | | | together. |
| involving an adult: | | | | |
| | | | * The juvenile lawyer must be very |
| * Juvenile delinquency is a delicate matter, | | | | transparent in his presentation. He must be |
| yet it is an issue that calls for special | | | | extremely logical in recreating the sequences |
| knowledge and expertise. | | | | that led to the crime. |
| | | | |
| * The juvenile lawyer needs to be empathetic | | | | It has become a strong concern among leading |
| and understanding towards the child as he or | | | | sociologists in the USA about the increasing |
| she acts and behaves differently from other | | | | number of child delinquency cases. Generally |
| children of his age. | | | | the delinquent child is exposed to an unusual |
| | | | environment that molds his mind and behavior |
| * He should have good working knowledge of | | | | in an abnormal and often socially |
| child psychology in order to be of any help | | | | unacceptable way. So the emotional aspect of |
| to the child. | | | | the child has to be focused upon in order to |
| | | | understand the child's motive or trigger for |
| * When a child commits a crime, it becomes | | | | committing the crime. Thus ultimately it |
| the responsibility of the lawyer to get to | | | | rests in the hands of the lawyer to draw the |
| the root of the child's problems and to weed | | | | sympathy of the jury in order to acquit the |
| out any factors in the child's environment | | | | child or to be more lenient. The end goal of |
| and relations that had any role, direct or | | | | the lawyer in these cases of juvenile |
| indirect, in turning the child into a | | | | delinquency is to frame the case in a manner |
| delinquent. | | | | that the child is not susceptible to strong |
| | | | legal actions. |
| Sometimes the stress of committing the crime | | | | |