Our office represents the Commonwealth of Kentucky in pursuing actions on behalf of and against juveniles. There are two primary classes of cases against juveniles'; public offenses and status cases.
A public offense is an incident which would be considered criminal if the offender was an adult. These cases range from rather minor offenses to those that are quite serious. These proceedings are confidential and are geared toward rehabilitation. In an extreme case, a juvenile may be transferred to regular court to be tried as an adult.
Status offenses include truancy, runaways, and beyond control cases. These offenses are usually heard in family court, whereas the public offenses are resolved in district court.
Not only do we pursue cases against offending juveniles, we also bring actions on their behalf. All children deserve safe, nurturing homes. We pursue actions against parents who neglect or abuse their children, and those who don’t provide basic care to them. A child may be removed from a home if their parents cannot demonstrate that they can properly provide for their children.
