Juvenile court blended sentencing offense and minimum age criteria, 2011

Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP), Serving Children, Families, and Communities

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Juveniles Tried as Adults

Q:	How do juvenile court blended sentencing provisions vary by state?
A:	As with transfer laws, state's juvenile court blended sentencing provisions are limited by age and offense criteria.

State	Minimum age	Any criminal offense	Certain felonies	Murder	Certain person offenses	Certain property offenses	Certain drug offenses	Certain weapon offenses
Alaska	16				16
Arkansas	NS		14	NS	14			14
Colorado	NS		NS		NS
Connecticut	NS		14		NS
Illinois	13		13
Kansas	10	10
Massachusetts	14		14		14			14
Michigan	NS		NS	NS	NS	NS	NS
Minnesota	14		14
Montana	NS		12	NS	NS	NS	NS	NS
New Mexico	14		14	14	14	14
Ohio	10		10	10
Rhode Island	NS		NS
Texas	NS		NS	NS	NS		NS

Note: Ages in the minimum age column may not apply to all offense restrictions, but represent the youngest possible age at which a juvenile may be judicially waived to criminal court. "NS" indicates that no minimum age is specified.

Blended sentencing laws address the correctional system (juvenile or adult) in which certain offenders of juvenile age will be sanctioned. Such statutes can be placed into two general categories: juvenile court blended sentencing and criminal court blended sentencing.
With juvenile court blended sentencing, the juvenile court has the authority to impose adult criminal sanctions on certain juvenile offenders. The majority of such laws authorize the juvenile court to combine a juvenile disposition with a criminal sentence that is suspended. If the youth successfully completes the juvenile disposition, the criminal sanction is not imposed. If, however, the youth does not cooperate or fails in the juvenile sanctioning system, the adult criminal sanction is imposed.
As of the end of the 2011 legislative session, 14 states had blended sentencing laws that enable juvenile courts to impose criminal sanctions on certain juvenile offenders.
Although the impact of juvenile blended sentencing laws depends on the specific provisions - which vary by state - in general, juvenile court blended sentencing expands the sanctioning powers of the juvenile court such that juvenile offenders may face the same penalties as adult offenders.

Internet citation: OJJDP Statistical Briefing Book. Online. Available: https://www.ojjdp.gov/ojstatbb/structure_process/qa04113.asp?qaDate=2011. Released on December 17, 2012.