In the case In re Winship the United States Supreme Court ruled that beyond a reasonable doubt should also be used in juvenile adjudications not just on adult trials (Krygier, 3). In the court case McKeiver v. Pennsylvania the United States Supreme Court confirmed that jury trials are not required by the Fourteenth Amendment in juvenile proceedings (Krygier, 3). In Breed v. Jones the court ruled that a person cannot be tried in Juvenile Court, and then transferred to adult court for the same offense. Because of this case a juvenile is protected from double jeopardy. In Sanford v. Kentucky and Wilkins v. Missouri the court found that it is not unconstitutional to sentence 16-18 year olds to death. The 8th Amendment right from cruel and unusual punishment was not applicable. .
Juvenile delinquents trials are closed to the press and to the media. Their names are usually kept secret and their records are kept confidential. The only people that can get access to a juveniles record are law enforcement personnel. These include the juvenile attorney, parent/guardian or the military. The reason why they keep all the information of the juvenile a secret is because they want to help and protect the juvenile. If their information is released it could affect them for the rest of their lives. People would also label the young individual and this may cause them to continue with their deviant behaviors. They will become what they are being labeled. The theory that is used to explain this phenomenon is called the labeling theory. The courts and the state try to help juveniles stay out of the prison system as much as they can but there are still many reasons why juveniles act in deviant ways.
There are many causes for children becoming juvenile delinquents. Some causes can be health problems, family problems, poverty, education, where they live, and peer pressure. Many of the children that live in poverty have no health insurance.
