38-B-1. Procedure in the Federal System
The federal government must follow the rules in the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act (or "JJDPA"), which you can find in Section 18 of the United States Code, Sections 5031-5042 (2006).If you are a juvenile and the government prosecutor did not follow one of the rules below in your case, you may be able to appeal your conviction. If your appeal succeeds, you may have your conviction vacated (reversed).11 Read the rules below and think about whether the government followed them in your case. If you think the government broke any of the rules below, you should tell your lawyer.
As defined in the JJDPA, a juvenile is:
(1) Anyone who is not yet eighteen years old; or
(2) Anyone who is not yet twenty-one and who is accused of committing an act of juvenile delinquency before he was eighteen.12
If you fit one of these two definitions of a juvenile, then the JJDPA probably applies to your case. The JJDPA does contain some complicated exceptions if you are in New York, which are explained in Part C(2)(b) below.
The JJDPA contains two sets of rules the government must follow. The first covers the "certification" of your case. The second covers "determining the status" of your case.
The first thing the federal government must do when prosecuting a juvenile is to "certify" the case. This means that the prosecutor representing the government must provide a document13 to the court that states that:
(1) There is a substantial "federal interest" in the case; and
(2) The state where the crime happened does not have or refuses to exercise jurisdiction; or
(3) The state with jurisdiction does not have adequate programs or services for juveniles; or
(4) The offense charged is a violent felony, a drug trafficking or importation offense, or a firearms offense.14
If you live in New York and are on trial in a federal court for a federal crime, the first thing the government must do is explain why there is a "federal interest" in your case. This means it must explain why your crime is dangerous to people in your home state and to people in other states, too. If you were accused of selling drugs in New York, for example, the government would probably say that there is a federal interest in prosecuting your case because the drugs you sold might...
