ABSTRACT
The majority of criminal cases against those aged under 18 years are tried and sentenced in the youth court. Cases involving young offenders will only appear in the adult Crown Court in a limited number of specific circumstances. One such circumstance is where the young person has committed a homicide or a grave crime, defined as an offence punishable with 14 years imprisonment or more in the case of an adult offender. Similarly, where a young person has committed an offence with an adult offender, they may both be referred to the Crown Court. Thus a youth will only appear in the Crown Court for trial and sentence when: charged with homicide; charged with a grave crime; or when charged together with an adult offender who has been sent to the Crown Court. For homicide cases there is no discretion, the youth must be sent to the Crown Court. In the other circumstances, the court has a discretion to send a case to the Crown Court if it is considered appropriate. Chapter 12 will examine the manner in which young people are tried in the Crown Court.
