Is Teen Court for you?

• Did you get caught stealing a piece of candy from the store?
• Did you get in a fight in the cafeteria?

If you committed one of these two acts or something similar* for which you have received a Citation and you admit that you made a mistake, you might have a chance to clear your records.

Instead of having to pay your fne and having a permanent criminal record** you might have the oopportunity to participate in Teen Court.

Teen Court is a revolutionary new program that gives first time Summary offenders a chance to be sentenced by their peers. Teen Court understands that teenagers are at the age when it is easy to be caught up in things that are wrong. The court believes these young adults are not bad.

Note: Juveniles charged with "underage drinking" wll have their driver's license suspended for ninety days.

Liberty (court pet)

The overall goal of Teen Court is to influence teens with positive peer pressure so that decisions in the future are made with better thoughts in mind.

For more information, questions, concerns or comments:

Teen Court
2 North High Street
Suite 318
West Chester, PA 19380
610-344-6576

Teen Court is a department in District Justice Administration of Chester County government. The department has the responsibility to implement Teen Court in District Justice offices throughout the County. The Teen Cuort office is directly supervised by Karen Dunn, Teen Court Coordinator.

Benefits
Successful completion of Teen Court requriements within the required 90 days will result in dismissal of all charges in the case.

Eligibility
• You must be 13–18 years old or 19 and still enrolled in High School
• Participation is based on a voluntary admission of guilt.
• Defendant must pay a $40 non-refundable fee.
• If the offense involves alcohol or marijuana the defendant must complete an adolescent substance awareness program approved b the Court.
• The defendant shall pay for all Court ordered treatment programs.
• The defendant will have his/her Driver's License suspended for 90 days if the offense is "Underage Drinking."

Disciplinary Sanctions
The peer jury, which is made up of volunteers from area high schools, and past defendants, may impose any or all of the following sanctions:

Teen Volunteers
The Teen Court program relies heavily on the support from the community. Jurors, attorneys, bailiffs and clerks are all local teenagers who volunteer their time for the benefit of this program. The teenage volunteers are trained in their respoctive jobs by the Young Lawyers Division of the Chester County Bar Association.

Teen Court Application
Please follow all directions in the Teen Court Application Packet, which you can pick up at District Court 15-1-04.