Juvenile Delinquency Court handles criminal cases against minors, i.e., persons under the age of eighteen. Parents are involved in the process. Crimes can be charged as either a felony or a misdemeanor. The juvenile court system is different in many ways from the adult criminal justice system. If the case is not resolved, Trials in juvenile court are only before the Judge; there are no jury trials in juvenile court. However, if a minor is adjudicated a delinquent in juvenile court, potential penalties include incarceration in a juvenile facility such as the California Youth Authority, Probation and a Deferred Entry of Judgment which results in no adjudication of delinquency and the case being dismissed at the end of a probationary period. For serious offenses, prosecutors seek to charge a minor as an adult in the adult criminal court system. We always work to keep the matter in the juvenile justice system because the penalties are more lenient, the jails are safer (if it ever comes to that) and juvenile records can be sealed at the conclusion of the case. Juveniles maintain the same rights as adults in Juvenile Dependency Court proceedings such as due process, the right to remain silent and requiring that charges be proven beyond a reasonable doubt. Often, without legal intervention, Law Enforcement Officers take advantage of minors and coerce confessions or manipulate evidence. Our experience in dealing with such police misconduct helps us obtain. The outcome of such proceedings can have an enormous impact on a child's future, aspirations and goals. Our office has handled many Juvenile Delinquency matters very successfully, and has helped our clients protect their future.