The California Juvenile Court Process: A Step-by-Step Guide for Parents and Guardians

When a child in California is accused of a crime, the case usually moves through juvenile court, not adult court. It follows a set path: police contact, a probation decision about release, a detention hearing if the child is held, possible diversion, a trial before a judge, a disposition hearing if the charges are found true, and later, record sealing.

If your child has just been questioned, taken into custody or handed a notice to appear, you are probably trying to work out what happens tonight, whether your child can come home, and what this means for school and the years ahead. This guide walks through each step California law sets out, who makes each decision, and how soon each one happens.

Before You Start: What This Guide Covers and What It Does Not

California's juvenile court has two separate tracks. This guide covers delinquency, the track for a child accused of breaking the law. Dependency, the track for allegations that a parent abused or neglected a child, follows different rules that this page does not cover.

Under Welf. & Inst. Code § 602, a minor who was between 12 and 17 years old, inclusive, when he or she allegedly violated a law defining a crime is generally within the juvenile court's jurisdiction, except as § 707 provides. A minor under 12 is covered only when accused of murder or of rape, sodomy, oral copulation or sexual penetration by force, violence, duress, menace or fear of immediate and unlawful bodily injury.

A few terms come up throughout:

• Petition: the court document that says what the state believes the child did.
• Detention hearing: the hearing where a judge decides whether a child stays in custody.
• Jurisdiction hearing: the juvenile court's trial, also called an adjudication hearing.
• Disposition: the court's orders after a petition is found true.
• Ward of the court: a child placed under the court's authority after the petition is found true.
• Probation: court or probation supervision with conditions.
• Diversion: handling a case outside formal court proceedings.
• Transfer hearing: the hearing on whether a case moves to adult court.
• Sealing: an order closing off records of the case.

For the national picture, see the guide to the juvenile court process.

Step 1: Police Contact, Questioning, and the Decision to Arrest

Welf. & Inst. Code § 625 calls this step taking a minor into "temporary custody." Under that section, a peace officer may do this without a warrant when the officer has reasonable cause to believe a minor under 18 is a person described in § 601 or § 602. The officer may also do it when the officer has reasonable cause to believe a ward of the juvenile court, or a minor subject to an order under § 636 or § 702, has violated a juvenile court order or escaped from a commitment it ordered. When a minor is taken into custody on those grounds, the officer must tell the minor that anything he says can be used against him. The officer must also explain the minor's constitutional rights, including the right to remain silent, the right to have counsel present during any interrogation, and the right to appointed counsel if he cannot afford one.

Questioning has its own rule. Under Welf. & Inst. Code § 625.6, before a custodial interrogation, and before any waiver of Miranda rights, a youth 17 years of age or younger must consult with legal counsel in person, by telephone or by video conference. That consultation cannot be waived. There are two limits. The rule does not govern the use of statements when an officer reasonably believed the information was needed to protect life or property from an imminent threat and asked only questions reasonably needed to get it. It also does not require a probation officer to comply in the normal performance of the duties listed in the statute.

Not every contact ends in custody. The Judicial Council's information sheet for parents says a child might be brought home or allowed to go home with a parent, with a written notice to appear at probation or court. That notice must be followed even if no one calls again. The same sheet says a child has the right to make at least two phone calls within one hour of being arrested.

Step 2: Intake, Detention, and the Probation Department's Decision

The probation officer, not the police, decides first whether a child goes home. Under Welf. & Inst. Code § 628, the probation officer must immediately investigate and immediately release the minor to a parent, legal guardian or responsible relative. The exception applies only when the evidence shows that staying in the home is contrary to the minor's welfare and one or more of these conditions exists:

• detention is urgently necessary to protect the minor, or reasonably necessary to protect another person or property;
• the minor is likely to flee the court's jurisdiction; or
• the minor has violated a juvenile court order.

Release can come with limits. California provides for home supervision, under which the child lives at home under conditions, and this can include electronic monitoring. The parent information sheet says the probation officer may also ask the district attorney to file a petition and may set limits on what the child is allowed to do while at home.

The clock matters most if your child is held overnight. Under Welf. & Inst. Code § 631, a detained minor generally must be released within 48 hours, excluding nonjudicial days, unless a petition to declare the minor a ward or a criminal complaint has been filed in that time. For a warrantless arrest on a misdemeanor that involves no violence, threat of violence or weapon, where the minor is not on probation or parole, a petition alone is not enough: release is still required unless a judge or referee has ordered the minor detained. The parent information sheet adds that if the probation officer does not release the child, the officer must notify the public defender within two hours.

Step 3: The Detention Hearing — The Court's First Decision

The detention hearing is usually the child's first time before a juvenile court judge or referee. The petition is filed before it. The self-help guide explains that the Probation Department or the District Attorney can file a petition, and that a petition "does not mean the youth is guilty." The child and parents have the right to a copy.

Under Welf. & Inst. Code § 632, a detained minor must be brought before the court as soon as possible, and in any event before the end of the next judicial day after the petition is filed. For some nonviolent misdemeanors, the limit is no later than 48 hours after custody began, excluding nonjudicial days. According to the parent information sheet, courts are closed on Saturdays, Sundays and holidays.

At the hearing, under Welf. & Inst. Code § 635, the court examines the minor and the parent or guardian and hears evidence the family or counsel presents. The court must order release unless one of these applies:

• the minor violated a court order or escaped a commitment;
• detention is urgently necessary to protect the minor, or reasonably necessary to protect another person or property; or
• the minor is likely to flee.

The court must also order release unless a prima facie showing, meaning enough initial evidence, has been made that the minor is a person described in § 601 or § 602. The court may consider the gravity of the alleged offense together with other factors. It may not base its decision solely on the county where the minor lives. If the court orders detention, Welf. & Inst. Code § 636 allows an order for a period not to exceed 15 judicial days, only where staying home is also contrary to the minor's welfare, and requires the order to be entered with the court's findings of fact in its records.

The self-help guide notes that unlike in adult court, there is no bail. Parents can ask to speak, and victims may also speak. The parent information sheet says the court appoints a lawyer for the child at the first hearing, at no cost, unless the family hires one. That lawyer represents only the child, not the parent.

Step 4: Diversion and Early Resolution Options

Diversion means resolving a case outside formal court proceedings. The parent information sheet says the probation officer might offer a diversion program instead of court, and that each county has different rules and programs.

Under Welf. & Inst. Code § 654, a probation officer who concludes a minor is or would be within the court's jurisdiction may refer the minor to services instead of filing a petition. This requires the consent of both the minor and the parent or guardian. If probation provides the services, the supervision program cannot exceed six months. The probation officer may still request a petition at any time during the six months or the 90 days after. If the minor has not participated within 60 days, a petition may be filed.

Deferred entry of judgment is a separate path under Welf. & Inst. Code § 790 et seq. It applies to certain felony cases when all of the statute's conditions are met. The conditions include:

• the minor has never been declared a ward for a felony;
• the offense is not one listed in § 707(b);
• probation has never been revoked without being completed;
• the minor is at least 14 at the time of the hearing; and
• the minor is eligible for probation under the Penal Code, as § 790 requires.

Whether any diversion is available depends on the alleged offense, the child's history and the decisions of probation and the court.

Step 5: The Jurisdiction Hearing — California's Version of a Trial

The jurisdiction hearing is where a judge decides whether the petition is true. The self-help guide states there is no jury. The district attorney must prove the allegations beyond a reasonable doubt, and the youth's attorney puts on a defense. The guide also notes that the youth may admit some or all of the charges instead of having a trial.

When the judge finds the proof insufficient, the self-help guide says the case is dismissed and the youth can go home. When the judge finds one or more allegations true, the petition is "sustained," which is California's term for that finding, and the case moves to disposition. A sustained petition is not a conviction. The parent information sheet adds that the defense is not required to present evidence.

Before trial, the court may hold pretrial conferences and motion hearings. At these, the lawyers discuss whether the case can be settled, sort out evidence questions and ask the judge to rule on legal issues.

Step 6: The Transfer Hearing — When a Case May Move to Adult Court

Under Welf. & Inst. Code § 707, the district attorney may make a motion to transfer a case to adult criminal court when the minor allegedly committed an offense listed in § 707(b), or any other felony, at age 16 or older. A narrower rule covers a minor who was 14 or 15 at the time of a § 707(b) offense but was not apprehended before juvenile court jurisdiction ended. In either case, the motion must be made before jeopardy attaches, meaning before the trial begins. The court must then order a probation report on the minor's behavioral patterns and social history, including any victim statement.

The parent information sheet says a transfer happens only if the prosecutor asks for it. Under § 707, the juvenile court judge decides after the probation report and any other relevant evidence either side offers, and may order a transfer only on a finding, by clear and convincing evidence, that the minor is not amenable to rehabilitation while under the jurisdiction of the juvenile court. The statute lists criteria the court must consider in making that decision.

What the court weighs depends on the facts and the statute. The guide on cases tried as an adult covers the transfer hearing in more depth.

Step 7: The Disposition Hearing — What Happens After a Sustained Petition

The disposition hearing happens only after a petition is sustained. At this hearing, the judge decides what orders to make for the child. The parent information sheet says it sometimes follows the jurisdiction hearing right away but is often set for another day. Under § 602, the court may adjudge the child a ward of the court.

The self-help guide describes the range of orders. The child may be placed on probation at home. If the judge decides the child cannot live at home, the options described include:

• a group home, which is privately run and contracts with the county;
• a county probation camp or ranch, usually for several months; or
• a secure youth treatment facility, which is for youth found to have committed the most serious offenses and involves a specific commitment term with periodic court review.

California's state Division of Juvenile Justice closed on June 30, 2023, and is no longer an option.

Review hearings check how the child is doing on probation or in placement. For a child in foster care or a secure youth treatment facility, the parent information sheet says these must happen at least once every six months. The parent information sheet also says the court can order parents to pay restitution to the victim, and that parents do not have to pay fees or pay back the cost of services, support or an attorney the county or court gave the child as part of the case.

Consequences for school, college, employment and similar matters can follow a juvenile case. They depend on the facts and on rules this page does not cover. Immigration consequences are governed by immigration law this page does not cover.

Step 8: Sealing a Juvenile Record in California

A juvenile record does not disappear or seal itself automatically at 18. California provides several specific paths to sealing.

Sealing after probation or supervision ends. Under Welf. & Inst. Code § 786, the court must dismiss the petition and seal the records when a person satisfactorily completes any of the following:

• an informal supervision program under § 654.2;
• probation under § 725; or
• a term of probation for any offense.

The records covered include those held by the court, law enforcement, probation and the Department of Justice. The court may not dismiss or seal under this section when the petition was sustained for an offense listed in § 707(b) committed at age 14 or older, unless that finding was dismissed or reduced to a misdemeanor or to a lesser offense not listed in § 707(b). Satisfactory completion means no new finding of wardship and no conviction for a felony or a misdemeanor involving moral turpitude during the supervision or probation, and no failure to substantially comply with reasonable orders within the person's capacity. The court also sets a date for the records to be destroyed. If the record includes a sustained petition that bars firearm possession until age 30, that destruction date is the person's 33rd birthday.

Sealing after diversion. Under Welf. & Inst. Code § 786.5, the probation department must seal its records after the child satisfactorily completes a diversion or supervision program offered instead of a petition. Law enforcement and the Department of Justice must then seal their records within 60 days of being notified.

Sealing by petition. Under Welf. & Inst. Code § 781, the person or the county probation officer may petition for sealing at either of these times:

• five years or more after juvenile court jurisdiction ends, or, if no petition was filed, after the contact with probation or law enforcement; or
• at any time after the person turns 18.

The district attorney receives notice of the petition and may testify at the hearing. The court orders sealing only if it finds the person has not been convicted of a felony or a misdemeanor involving moral turpitude since jurisdiction ended and that rehabilitation has been attained to the court's satisfaction. A petition about an offense listed in § 707(b) committed at age 14 or older is subject to added limits in § 781(a)(1)(D) to (F), and such a record for which the person must register under Penal Code § 290.008 shall not be sealed.

What sealing allows. Sealed records can still be accessed in limited situations the statutes list, including by the prosecutor, probation or the court when a later transfer motion under § 707 is made or after a later felony finding (§ 786(g)). Welf. & Inst. Code § 787 also allows limited access, such as for required data reporting without personally identifying information and for court-approved research.

Typical Timeline and When the Process Gets More Complicated

Typical timeline

The early deadlines are set in hours and judicial days:

• release within 48 hours unless a petition is filed (§ 631);
• a detention hearing by the end of the next judicial day after filing (§ 632); and
• a detention order of no more than 15 judicial days (§ 636).

After that, the timing depends on the facts and the court. Diversion and early resolution can shorten a case. Contested hearings, multiple charges, co-respondents, expert witnesses and continuances can lengthen it. A probation supervision program under § 654 cannot exceed six months.

When the process gets more complicated

A transfer motion. A transfer motion adds a separate hearing and a probation report before the case can go forward.

A new arrest or probation violation. Under § 625, a ward believed to have violated a court order may be taken into custody. A violated order is also a ground for detention under §§ 628 and 635.

Confidentiality. The self-help guide states that juvenile records are confidential and that only certain parties and their lawyers can see the court file.

A dependency case at the same time. If a dependency case is also open, § 628 bars the probation officer from basing a decision to detain on a child's dependency status where the juvenile court has removed the child from a parent's or guardian's custody. The dependency case itself follows separate rules.

For how cases unfold by charge, see juvenile assault charges.

Discussing the Next Step in Your Child's Case

Each step in a California juvenile case turns on its own deadline and its own decision-maker, from the probation officer's release decision to a possible transfer motion. This page explains the general process and does not address any particular case.

To request a consultation about a child's juvenile case, use Juvenile Justice Defense Group.