ABSTRACT
The juvenile court system as we know it today is the result of years of development. To understand the current system, you need to know how it arrived at its present state. In most states, the juvenile system is only slightly over 100 years old. The first juvenile court was established in Chicago by Progressive Era reformers in 1899. Throughout most of recorded history, children have not enjoyed the special legal status that they presently hold. Prior to the establishment of the juvenile courts, children were generally prosecuted under the same statutes and guidelines that were used with adult offenders.
