What is the name of your state? Indiana
"Suppose a juvenile gets into trouble, but his involvement was not overly serious, his parents seem capable and level headed, and the police do not feel that a full petition for wardship is necessary. In that case, they can bring the juvenile before a Juvenile Probation Officer for initial intake and counseling. The Officer may just talk to him or her with the parents present, or assist them in maintaining better control over their child. This is not actually being "on probation," but it is useful and sufficient in many cases and avoids bringing the juvenile into the legal process."
by "avoids bringing the juvenile into the legal process" does that mean the juvenile does not go to court? or what happens after the meeting?
Where did you get the info you quoted above? Just curious, because that phrasing is odd to me. And what county are you in?
Anyway, I'm a juvenile probation officer in Indiana. The intake officer/probation officer will interview you and your child. The officer may ask to speak to your child alone. I always do this so that I can ask about drug and alcohol use without the parents in the room. I find that kids will be a lot more honest if mom or dad isn't sitting next to them when they answer those sorts of questions.
The officer will then send a recommendation down to the prosecutor with a writeup of the interview. That writeup will include a copy of the police report, and the juvenile's version of the offense, as well as information about the juvenile's home and school activities. The officer doesn't make the decision about what happens with the case, but only makes a recommendation. The prosecutor decides what to do.
The recommendation, and resulting action, will be one of the following:
1) Petition should be filed, which means the juvenile and parents go to court.
2) Juvenile and family referred to another agency, such as Department of Child Services
3) Dismiss the case, which means there will be no action
4) Informally adjust the case, which is probably what your quoted paragraph refers to.
Informal adjustment happens when the juvenile admits the offense to the intake officer, and the offense is not serious in nature. If the juvenile has committed a prior offense, an informal adjustment will not be offered--it's a one-time chance to not go to court for an offense. The juvenile will not have to go to court, but will still get just about all the same terms of probation as would be given if a petition had been filed.
The benefit of an Informal Adjustment instead of going to Court is that there are a lot fewer costs. Here's a comparison of a 6 month term of probation after going to court, and an informal adjustment: (not counting any programming or class fees)
PETITION FILED INFORMAL ADJUSTMENT
100 admin fee 15 month X 6 months
100 initial probation fee
15 month X 5 (for a misdemeanor)
__________________________________________________________
$275 $90
In addition, it's a lot easier to expunge an informal adjustment than a formal petition. With an informal adjustment, the court doesn't have a full copy of the case (it's in probation and the prosecutor's office.)
If you fail to fulfill the requirements of the IFA, the prosecutor can still file a petition for that offense.
In our county, all offense that would be a felony if committed by an adult get a petition filed. Only status offenses and misdemeanors are eligible for IFAs. In addition, any offense involving drugs goes to court.
