NCJ Number
89469
Journal
New York Law School Law Review Volume: 26 Issue: 3 Dated: (1981) Pages: 643-675
Date Published
1981
Length
33 pages
Annotation
This article analyses the New York Court of Appeals decision in Vega v. Bell (1979), which held that due process not require a hearing prior to the denial of a juvenile offender's request for removal from criminal to family court.
Abstract
The court argued that the U.S. Supreme Court decision in Kent v. United States, which held that due process required a full hearing prior to a transfer, was not applicable to the Vega case on the ground that the applicable statute in Kent placed exclusive original jurisdiction in the juvenile court, whereas the New York statute placed original jurisdiction in the adult court. However, a judicial decision to deny removal terminates a juvenile's access to the benefits of family court treatment. The Vega court, by focusing on a juvenile's lack of entitlement to removal, ignores the effect of the removed decision on the juvenile's interest in liberty. The hearing is the only assurance against arbitrariness and abuse. Footnotes, a list of waiver provisions and practices by State, and a list of States that have found Kent to be of constitutional dimension are provided.