Jurisdiction – All criminal offenses committed by a juvenile (one who is under 18 years of age).
Filing of Petitions – Petitions against juveniles originate with the Intake Office of the Court Service Unit, (804) 501-4693.
Court Calendar – Juvenile arraignments are held beginning at 8:15 a.m. Monday through Thursday. Criminal trials for juveniles are held on Monday and Thursday.
Right to Counsel – The juvenile has a right to be represented by a lawyer. If you choose to hire a lawyer to represent the juvenile, you will be given a reasonable opportunity to hire, at your expense, a lawyer selected by you. The judge will decide what is a reasonable opportunity to hire a lawyer. If you have not hired a lawyer after such reasonable opportunity, the judge may try the case even though the juvenile does not have a lawyer to represent him. If you ask the judge for a lawyer to represent the juvenile and the judge decides, after reviewing your sworn financial statement(s), that you cannot afford a lawyer, the judge will select and appoint a lawyer to represent the juvenile. However, if the juvenile or the parents are financially able to pay, the juvenile or the parents may be required to pay the lawyer’s fee as set by the judge within statutory limits.
Right to appeal – If you wish to appeal your case you must do so within ten (10) calendar days of the entry of the final order in writing.
