The Juvenile Justice Unit of the Essex County Prosecutor's Office prosecutes juveniles for acts of delinquency that include murder and other offenses that if committed by an adult would be indictable offenses. The goals of the Unit are to ensure public safety through swift and certain punishment of the violent and repetitive delinquent; to reduce recidivism through accountability and recommendations for structured supervision; and to divert minor offenders away from delinquency, thereby reducing the need for further court action. Ultimately, the goal is to stop recidivism and break the escalating and intensifying cycle of delinquency.

The Code of Juvenile Justice (N.J.S.A. 2A:4A-23) defines delinquency to include the commission of an act by an individual under age 18 which if committed by an adult would constitute a crime; a disorderly persons offense or petty disorderly persons offense; or the violation of any other penal statute, ordinance or regulation, excluding motor vehicle, curfew, and smoking in public. (These cases are heard in municipal court.)

Ultimately, the Juvenile Justice Unit is responsible for the prosecution or other disposition of all formal complaints charging acts of juvenile delinquency in Essex County. Eight assistant prosecutors assigned to four juvenile courts handle individual court calendars at various stages in the prosecution process - from the detention stage through weekly call calendar (plea conference), waiver applications, hearings, trial and ultimate disposition. The Juvenile Justice Unit uses a "vertical prosecution" model. Simply put, an Assistant Prosecutor is responsible for a case from start to finish. The Juvenile Justice Unit prepares, investigates, screens and litigates all delinquency cases that are heard before the court. This differs from the regular (adult) Trial Section. The regular Trial Section is compartmentalized and uses a horizontal prosecution model. Under the horizontal model, different sections of the Prosecutor's Office handle the same case at different stages in the prosecution process. Vertical prosecution helps to move juvenile cases through the court very rapidly. The Juvenile Justice Unit performs all of the screening functions of the Municipal, Consolidated and Grand Jury units. It argues the State's "bail"/ detention hearing recommendations, comparable to adult proceedings in the CJP Court; and also performs trial preparation and litigation functions.

In addition to prosecuting cases in court, the Unit provides daily legal advice to the twenty-two Juvenile Bureaus within Essex County and offers legal support to the Juvenile Referee Program and other court sponsored initiatives such as the "Alliance for Compliance" (involving intensified supervision of juveniles on probation). The unit also works closely with the local schools that require legal or investigative assistance. Members of the Unit also volunteer to conduct training sessions within the community regarding the consequences of delinquency and gang involvement.

STAFFING: The Juvenile Justice Unit consists of the following staff: eight Assistant Prosecutors who handle the cases that appear before the four juvenile judges; eight Investigators and one Lieutenant/Investigator provides investigative support; two Victim/Witness Counselors provide service to the victims; and an Office Supervisor supervises the clerical staff of seven and manages the Office. In addition, two Assistant Prosecutors handle cases identified as appropriate for the Juvenile Chronic Offender Program (JCOP). JCOP began in 1992 and is designed to effectively identify, target and aggressively prosecute chronic and violent offenders.

The Juvenile Justice Unit belongs to a cluster of related units reporting to a Chief Assistant Prosecutor. These units include the Domestic Violence Unit, Sex Crimes Unit, Megan's Law Unit, Child Abuse Unit, Victim/Witness Office, and SANE Program.

JUVENILE CRIME: Over the past decade, the juvenile justice system in Essex County has come to the forefront of public attention. In 2005, 4,926 juveniles committed new offenses as compared to 4,991 juveniles in 2006. Total burglary/theft offenses, narcotics, robbery and weapons offenses for juveniles have increased by 19 percent since 1992. However, juveniles committing carjacking and narcotics offenses decreased subtantially in 2006. Juveniles committing homicides increased from 9 in 2005 to 10 in 2006. Regarding chronic offenders, 966 juveniles were reviewed for participation in the Juvenile Chronic Offender Program, and 570 were accepted for prosecution as chronic offenders. Eighty percent of the cases received by the Juvenile Courts allege offenses that would be first, second and third degree indictable offenses, if committed by an adult. These are the most serious offenses found in the Criminal Code.

Approximately twenty percent of all the juveniles arrested in New Jersey for violent offenses are prosecuted in Essex County. The Essex County Prosecutor's Office has formulated a proactive response to this trend, by assigning experienced Assistant Prosecutors to the Juvenile Justice Unit. A core group of experienced Assistant Prosecutors handle the more serious cases and target chronic recidivists.

The New Jersey Juvenile Delinquency Commission has performed various studies of juvenile offenders. These studies indicate the existence of a small core of chronic juvenile offenders in urban areas such as Essex County, responsible for multiple and serious offenses. Therefore, a State Attorney General directive, issued August 16, 1990, suggested the initiation of a program designed to target chronic juvenile offenders, or juvenile impact offenders. Accordingly, the Juvenile Chronic Offender Program (JCOP) targets chronic recidivist for aggressive prosecution. Concentrating on these recidivists increased the likelihood of pretrial detention, waiver and incarceration, when appropriate, and substantially reduced the number of offenses these individuals were permitted to commit. A 1995 report, issued by the Governor's Advisory Council on Juvenile Justice, also supported the targeting of chronic recidivists.

COMMUNITY OUTREACH & PROACTIVE PREVENTION: The Juvenile Justice Unit seeks to keep itself in tune with the community it serves, through outreach and interaction with municipal law enforcement, educators, community groups and other county prosecutor's offices. The Chief Assistant Prosecutor who oversees the Unit attends quarterly meetings of the twenty-one statewide juvenile unit chiefs, sponsored by the Prosecutors and Police Bureau of the New Jersey Division of Criminal Justice. This is a forum for the exchange of information regarding new laws and any problems and concerns with the juvenile justice system. The Chief Assistant Prosecutor is also a member of the court-sponsored juvenile working group, which analyses case processing and makes improvements, and also works with the various agencies that come through the court in an effort to improve the communication between those agencies and the Prosecutor's Office. The Juvenile Justice Unit also participates in the Essex County Youth Services Commission. The Youth Services Commission funds, through the Juvenile Justice Commission, county-based programs designed for rehabilitating juveniles who have either offended, are at risk of offending, or are involved with a family crisis situation.

The Essex County Prosecutor's Office is well aware of the rise in juvenile gang activity in Essex County. The Chief Assistant Prosecutor who oversees the Juvenile Justice Section, along with members of the Community Justice Program, Gang Intelligence Unit, and legal and investigation staff from other Office units provide training for law enforcement, educators, parents and community organizations in the recognition of youth at risk of gang involvement, and to assist in the identification of gangs active in Essex County. These efforts at the county level are in conjunction with initiatives implemented by municipal police departments to identify and monitor youth gang activity within their respective communities.

For more information on the juvenile justice system in Essex County, see Frequently Asked Questions.