Juvenile Defendants

Outreach Request

The Community Outreach Program connects residents with city services, events, and support resources to strengthen community engagement.

Submit Request

Juvenile Information

Juveniles

The Municipal Court has jurisdiction over juveniles, ages 10 through 16, charged with Class “C” Misdemeanors.

Appearances

All Juveniles are required to appear in open court for all proceedings in their cases. The parent or guardian of any juvenile charged in Municipal Court is required to be present in court with their child. Juveniles who fail to appear or who fail to pay their fine will be reported to the Department of Public Safety. The Department of Public Safety will suspend their driver’s license. If they do not have a driver’s license, they will not be able to obtain one until they appear in Court to dispose of their fine.

Minors

A Minor person is a person under the age of 21 years of age. If you are a minor between the ages of 17 and 20 and have been charged with an alcohol or tobacco related offense, you must appear in court. If you do not receive a Notice to Appear in the mail by your citation appearance date, please contact the court.

Youth Diversion

The purpose of the Youth Diversion Plan is to give children who are accused of engaging in behavior which results in a misdemeanor punishable by fine only the opportunity to be diverted from formal criminal prosecution, if eligible, as provided in Chapter 45, subsection E of the Texas Code of Criminal Procedure. A child who meets eligibility requirements must be offered a diversion agreement. The child’s participation is voluntary and must be agreed to by both the child and the parent in writing.

Juvenile Case Managers

Defendant and parents will meet with the Juvenile Case Managers (JCM) prior to court for “intake” in which the JCM will ask questions relating to the juvenile in regards to the offense to help the JCM to provide guidance for completing court orders.