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Teen
Court Roles |
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Judge
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judge is the senior authority in the courtroom. He/she introduces
the respondent to the teenage peer jurors who are informed of
the charge against the respondent and the reported circumstances.
After hearing the evidence presented by a teenage prosecutor
and defense attorney, the jury considers the appropriate sanctions
for the offense. The decision is reviewed by the judge and read
to the respondent. Based on experience, the judge discusses
the offense with the respondent and parents present and the
potential impact on their future. All issues that
may arise about procedure, questions from the jury, or the
applicable law are resolved by the judge.
Meet
our judges. |
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prosecutor has the responsibility to seek justice and to seek
a sentence based on the severity of the offense committed, not
simply be an advocate for the highest possible sentence. This
teen prepares the case, gives an opening statement, questions
the respondent, and gives a closing argument to the jury. The
prosecution becomes familiar with both the aggravating and mitigating
circumstances of the case and diligently brings forward all
the reasons that the jury
should impose sanctions that will be constructive and rehabilitative. |
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Defense Attorney
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defense attorney represents the respondent and is their advocate.
This teen prepares the case, gives an opening statement, objects
to any questioning by the prosecuting attorney that is believed
wrong, questions the respondent, and presents a closing argument
to the jury. Every effort is made by the defense attorney to
bring out any and all mitigating circumstances to convince the
jury to reduce the penalties they are required to impose upon
the respondent. While the defense attorney must zealously seek
to help the client, it is important to never misrepresent the
case. |
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Bailiff
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The
Teen Court bailiff is an officer of the Court whose chief
duty is maintaining the safety and security of all Teen
Court participants.
Duties
of the bailiff are guarding the jurors, escorting the defendants
and their families into the courtroom, announcing and assisting
the Judge during the hearing, and maintaining order in the
courtroom throughout the hearing.
In Charles
County Teen Court, the bailiff is oftentimes a Sheriff's
Cadet or the adult staff volunteer who also serves as the
jury monitor during deliberations.
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Jury
Member |
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Jury
duty is a privilege and a serious responsibility. A juror
is required to base the verdict on the evidence as heard in
court. The sentence should be designed to hold the respondents
responsible for their actions. A juror must be able and perform
honestly, without fear or favor.
Jurors
are randomly selected from the Teen Court volunteer pool and
jury members often include previous offenders who have been
sanctioned to serve jury duty.
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Jurors
are screened prior to each hearing to ensure that they do
not know the offender and are obligated to treat each case
individually, perform honestly, conscientiously, without
prejudice, and without fear or favor.
Jurors
are required to base their decisions on the evidence presented
in court and upon the law as the Judge instructs. They also
must reach a majority decision on the sanctions they will
impose upon the offender.
Prior to each hearing a jury foreman is appointed. The foreman
is responsible for guiding the jury deliberations, whether
in the petit or grand jury format, recording the dispositions
agreed upon on the case disposition form, and providing
same to the judge when asked after returning to the courtroom
at the conclusion of deliberations. During deliberations,
any questions that arise that the jury monitor can not answer
are passed to the Judge for resolution.
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