A juvenile is tried as an adult when the case is heard in criminal court rather than juvenile court. Each state sets its own rules. In California, a juvenile court judge decides at a transfer hearing, and can order transfer only on clear and convincing evidence that the minor is not amenable to rehabilitation there.

If you are reading this, your son or daughter has probably been arrested on a serious charge, and somewhere in the first hearing or the first phone call, someone used the words "adult court." Most parents facing that phrase have no idea what it sets in motion: whether it has already happened, whether a judge decides it, how much time there is, and what it would mean for a sixteen- or seventeen-year-old who was in a classroom last week. Those are the questions this page works through, in the order they usually come up.

This page explains what transfer to adult court is, the different ways states allow it, what a transfer hearing decides, and what changes if a case moves. It uses California's juvenile law as the worked example, and says so wherever a rule is California's.

What It Means When a Juvenile Is Tried as an Adult

Transfer to adult court means a case involving a minor leaves the juvenile system and is handled by a criminal court, the same court that hears cases against adults. Different states and different people call this a transfer, a waiver (the juvenile court "waives" its authority over the case) or a certification (the minor is "certified" to stand trial as an adult). The three words describe the same basic event.

Juvenile court and adult criminal court are separate systems. They use different words, follow different procedures and lead to different results. In juvenile court, the document that starts the case is a petition, the trial is usually called an adjudication or jurisdiction hearing, and the outcome is a disposition. A juvenile adjudication is not called a conviction, and a disposition is not called a sentence. Once a case moves to adult court, that changes. The case proceeds with charges, a possible conviction and a possible sentence, and adult consequences follow.

The constitutional starting point is the United States Supreme Court's decision in In re Gault, 387 U.S. 1 (1967), which recognized that minors in delinquency proceedings are entitled to due-process protections. Beyond that federal floor, there is no single national law on transferring minors to adult court. Each state writes its own. The federal Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention notes that states vary in their upper age of juvenile court jurisdiction, the oldest age at which juvenile court has original authority over a young person, and that age 17 is the most common upper age. The same page notes that within most states there are exceptions that place some youth at or below that age in adult court from the start.

That is why the first factual question in any transfer case is simply which state the case is pending in. The ages, the offenses and the procedure all depend on the answer.

The Three Main Ways a Case Can Move to Adult Court

Across the United States, a minor's case generally reaches adult court by one of three routes. Knowing which one applies tells a family whether a judge will decide the question, whether someone else already has, or whether the law decided it in advance.

Judicial waiver, through a transfer hearing. The case starts in juvenile court. The prosecutor, or in some places an intake officer, asks the juvenile court to give up its authority. OJJDP describes this as a waiver petition, filed when the prosecutor or intake officer believes a case would be more appropriately handled in criminal court. The court reviews the facts, determines whether there is probable cause to believe the youth committed the act, and then considers whether to waive jurisdiction and transfer the case. A transfer hearing is the stage where the defense has the most direct role in the decision, because a judge hears evidence and argument from both sides before ruling.

Prosecutorial direct file. According to the same OJJDP case-flow description, in a growing number of states the legislature has given prosecutors discretion to file a defined list of cases in either juvenile or adult court. In those states both courts have original jurisdiction over those cases, and the prosecutor chooses. This route does not exist everywhere.

Statutory or legislative exclusion. OJJDP also notes that in many states prosecutors are required to file certain, generally serious, cases involving youth in criminal court, because the legislature has decided those cases belong there. Its glossary describes these as cases charged under a defined list of "excluded offenses" that must originate in adult court when the youth is of a certain age. This, too, varies by state.

California as the worked example. California's rule is a judicial transfer hearing under Welf. & Inst. Code § 707. Under that section, the district attorney or other prosecuting officer may make a motion to transfer a minor from juvenile court to a court of criminal jurisdiction in two situations:

  • the minor was 16 or older at the time of the alleged offense, and the offense is one listed in § 707(b) or any other felony; or
  • the individual was 14 or 15 at the time of an offense listed in § 707(b), but was not apprehended before the end of juvenile court jurisdiction.

The § 707(b) list is long. It includes murder, attempted murder, robbery, certain forcible sex offenses, kidnapping for ransom or robbery, assault with a firearm or destructive device, assault by means of force likely to produce great bodily injury, carjacking while armed with a dangerous or deadly weapon, and voluntary manslaughter, among others. The Judicial Council's self-help guide summarizes that serious offenses usually involve violence or weapons. Other states' ages, offense lists and procedures differ, and California's rule should not be read as anyone else's.

What a Transfer Hearing Decides — and How

A transfer hearing is a separate proceeding that comes before any trial on the charge itself. It does not decide whether the child did what is alleged. It decides which court will hear that question. For a family watching from the gallery, that distinction matters: the hearing is about the child as a whole person, not only about the accusation.

In California, the process runs in a set order, under Welf. & Inst. Code § 707 and the California Rules of Court:

  1. The motion. The prosecutor files a motion to transfer. Under § 707 it must be made before jeopardy attaches, which in plain terms means before the juvenile trial begins. California Rules of Court, rule 5.766 requires notice of the transfer hearing at least five judicial days before the hearing.
  2. A threshold showing. Under the same rule, the court first determines whether a prima facie showing has been made that the alleged offense is one that makes the youth subject to transfer.
  3. The probation report. The juvenile court orders the probation officer to prepare a report on the minor's behavioral patterns and social history. Under § 707, the report includes any written or oral statement offered by the victim. Rule 5.768 requires the report to address all of the § 707 criteria, and requires that it be furnished to the youth, the parent or guardian, and all counsel at least two court days before the hearing. A party who did not receive it in time is entitled on request to a continuance of at least 24 hours. If the court orders it, the probation officer also makes a recommendation on whether the youth should stay in juvenile court.
  4. The hearing. The court considers the report and any other relevant evidence either side wishes to submit. Under § 707, the court postpones taking a plea to the petition until the transfer hearing ends, and a plea already entered is not evidence at the hearing.
  5. The ruling. The transfer hearing must be held and decided before the jurisdiction hearing begins, under rule 5.766.

The standard. To order transfer, the California court must find by clear and convincing evidence that the minor is not amenable to rehabilitation while under the jurisdiction of the juvenile court. Rule 5.770 places the burden of proving that transfer is warranted on the petitioner, which is the prosecution.

The five criteria. Section 707(a)(3) requires the court to consider five criteria:

  • Criminal sophistication. The court gives weight to relevant factors including the minor's age, maturity, intellectual capacity, and physical, mental and emotional health at the time; impetuosity or failure to appreciate risks; family, adult or peer pressure; family and community environment; childhood trauma; involvement in the child welfare or foster care system; and status as a victim of human trafficking, sexual abuse or sexual battery.
  • Whether the minor can be rehabilitated before juvenile court jurisdiction expires, including the minor's potential to grow and mature.
  • Previous delinquent history, including its seriousness and the effect of family and community environment and childhood trauma on it.
  • Success of previous attempts at rehabilitation, including the adequacy of services previously provided to address the minor's needs.
  • The circumstances and gravity of the alleged offense, including the minor's actual behavior, mental state, degree of involvement, the level of harm actually caused, and the minor's mental and emotional development. The court must also consider evidence that the person the minor is accused of harming trafficked, sexually abused or sexually battered the minor.

Reading that list, many parents notice how much of it concerns the child's history, development and circumstances rather than the charge alone. That is built into the statute.

The right to counsel. In Kent v. United States, 383 U.S. 541 (1966), the United States Supreme Court held that before a juvenile court waives its jurisdiction, the minor is entitled to a hearing, to counsel with access to the social records the court considers, and to a statement of the court's reasons. The transfer hearing is treated as a critical stage of the case.

The outcomes. If the court denies the motion, the case stays in juvenile court and continues there. If the court orders transfer, § 707 requires it to recite the basis for its decision in an order entered on the minutes, including its reasons for finding the minor not amenable to rehabilitation; rule 5.770 adds that the court must state how it weighed the evidence and the specific factors it relied on. Under the same rule, an order granting transfer is an appealable order subject to immediate review, and a notice of appeal must be filed within 30 days of the order (or within 30 days of the other events the rule lists when a referee made the decision). Under Welf. & Inst. Code § 707.1, once a case is transferred, the prosecutor may file an accusatory pleading in criminal court and the case proceeds under the laws that apply to a criminal case. Nothing about this hearing has a predictable result; it turns on the evidence and on how the court weighs the criteria.

Consequences of Being Tried as an Adult

Once a case is in adult court, the vocabulary changes, and so do the stakes. The child is a defendant facing charges. If the case ends in a guilty finding, that is a conviction, and the court imposes a sentence.

Custody and release. In California's juvenile court, the self-help guide notes, there is no "bail"; the judge decides whether a youth in custody stays in custody or goes home. After transfer, Welf. & Inst. Code § 707.1 provides that the minor is entitled to release on bail or on their own recognizance on the same circumstances, terms and conditions as an adult accused of the same offense.

Where a sentence is served. The same self-help page states that a youth tried as an adult in California can be sent to adult prison (CDCR) if found guilty. Families sometimes encounter older material describing California's Division of Juvenile Justice. According to the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, all Division of Juvenile Justice facilities closed effective July 1, 2023, so it is not a current placement.

The record. An adult conviction creates an adult criminal record, which is a different thing from a juvenile record. The rules a state writes for limiting access to or sealing juvenile records are generally not the rules that govern adult convictions, and what can be done with an adult record depends on that state's adult law and the facts of the case.

Everything around the case. School discipline, college admissions, financial aid, employment and housing consequences can follow an adult conviction. They depend on the facts and on rules this page does not cover in full. For a child who is not a United States citizen, the immigration consequences of an adult conviction can be severe, and those consequences are governed by immigration law, which this page does not cover.

How Juvenile Court Differs From Adult Court

The juvenile system is built around rehabilitation, meaning the effort to help a young person change course. Adult criminal court is built around accountability and punishment. Both systems exist side by side, and a transfer moves a child from one to the other. That difference in purpose is also why so much of a transfer hearing focuses on whether the juvenile system can still do its job for this particular child.

A few terms come up again and again. In plain words:

  • Petition: the document that starts a juvenile case and states what the minor is accused of. In California it is often called a 602 petition. It is not an indictment or a complaint.
  • Detention hearing: the first court hearing for a child held in custody, where a judge decides whether the child stays detained or goes home. OJJDP notes that in all states a detention hearing must be held within a time period set by statute, generally within 24 hours. In California, the Judicial Council's information for parents (JV-060-INFO) states that if the district attorney decides to file charges, a petition must be filed within 48 hours of the arrest, and a detention hearing must be held the next day the court is in session; courts are closed on Saturdays, Sundays and holidays.
  • Jurisdiction hearing (adjudication): the juvenile version of a trial. In California, the self-help guide explains, a judge decides whether the youth did what is alleged, there is no jury, and the district attorney must prove the allegations beyond a reasonable doubt. OJJDP notes that some states give youth the right to a jury trial.
  • Disposition: the juvenile court's decision about what happens after a petition is found true.
  • Ward of the court: a minor placed under the juvenile court's ongoing authority after a disposition.
  • Probation: supervision in the community by a probation officer, with conditions set by the court.
  • Diversion: a way of resolving a case without formal court proceedings. California's JV-060-INFO explains that a probation officer might offer a diversion program instead of going to court; each county has different rules and programs, and if the family and child agree and the child completes the program, the juvenile court does not need to get involved.
  • Transfer hearing: the hearing described above, deciding whether a case moves to adult court.
  • Sealing: a court process that limits who can see a record. It does not happen on its own at 18, and who can seek it and what it does depend on state law.

Two further differences matter. Juvenile proceedings are generally confidential, while adult criminal proceedings are generally public. And adult court affords the full range of trial rights, including a jury trial and a public trial, while juvenile procedure varies from state to state.

Questioning comes before all of this. California's JV-060-INFO states that a child under 18 who is in custody must have a confidential consultation with an attorney before deciding to answer questions or give up rights, that this right cannot be given up, and that the officer must give Miranda warnings after that consultation and before asking about what happened. It also states that a child has the right to make at least two phone calls within one hour of arrest.

What This Site Covers — and What It Does Not

This page is about how a minor's case moves to adult court and what follows. It does not set out every state's transfer law, every offense, or every local procedural variation; California is used as the example because its rules are stated here from the statute and court rules themselves. It notes immigration consequences without resolving them, because they are governed by immigration law. It does not cover school expulsion proceedings, financial aid eligibility rules or employment licensing in detail. It is also not about a dependency case, where a parent is accused of abuse or neglect, or about an adult's own criminal case.

Discussing Your Child's Case

A possible transfer is the point in a juvenile case where the most turns on a single hearing: whether the case stays in a system built around rehabilitation or moves to one built around punishment. A consultation about this kind of case can cover the petition and the specific charge, whether a transfer motion has been filed and when the hearing is set, whether the child is detained, the stage the case has reached, and how the transfer criteria and the probation report fit into the hearing. This page explains California's process as the example and does not state the transfer rules of other states.

To discuss a case like this with an attorney, contact Juvenile Justice Defense Group to request a consultation about a child's juvenile case.