Why can some young people be tried as adults for serious crimes in the United States?

In the United States, young people may be tried as adults for serious crimes through three primary mechanisms that transfer them out of the juvenile court system:1

• Statutory exclusion: State laws mandate that juveniles within a specific age range who commit certain offenses must be processed in criminal court.1
• Prosecutorial discretion: Prosecutors have the authority to choose to file charges in criminal court, subject to limitations based on the youth's age and the nature of the offense.1
• Judicial waiver: A juvenile court judge may decide to waive the case to criminal court, provided the transfer falls within legal limits regarding age and offense type.1

These transfers are often driven by legislative efforts to deter juvenile crime through more stringent penalties. While juvenile courts generally maintain jurisdiction over individuals until they reach the age of majority (typically 18), transferring a case to criminal court allows for confinement beyond the age of 21, which is usually the maximum age for juvenile court jurisdiction. Notably, while some states prohibit the transfer of very young children, others allow juveniles as young as 10 to be tried as adults.1