Juvenile Criminal Defense
If you need a dedicated and experienced defense lawyer to represent your son or daughter, contact my Overland Park, Kansas, law office today. I have a thorough familiarity with juvenile procedure, the practices of the prosecutors and courts in determining the disposition of juvenile offenses in Johnson County and Wyandotte County, and the range of community-based treatment and diversion programs that can often serve as a useful alternative to the criminal justice system.
Johnson County, Kansas Juvenile Criminal Defense Lawyer
Although the District Court of Johnson County, Kansas is located in Olathe, Johnson County District Court has exclusive jurisdiction over most Juvenile Misdemeanor and Felony Offenses committed in the cities within Johnson County, including DeSoto, Gardner, Leawood, Lenexa. Mission, Merriam, Olathe, Overland Park, Prairie Village and Shawnee. Each of these cities may elect to prosecute juveniles for limited misdemeanr traffic offenses and MIP charges occurring within their city limits, but Municipal Courts do not have jurisdiction over most juvenile misdemeanor matters. Municipal Courts in Kansas do not have jurisdiction over any juvenile felony charges. These cases are forwarded to the Johnson County District Attorney and the Wyandotte County Attorney for prosecution at the District Court level.
For serious criminal offenses, such as homicide, sexual assault, or aggravated assault and battery, questions often arise as to whether the defendant will be tried as an adult. For the most serious crimes, the prospect of a long prison sentence if found guilty following waiver to adult status provides a powerful incentive to keep the case in juvenile court whenever the risk of conviction appears substantial.
My juvenile defense practice relies heavily on pretrial advocacy. Not only do we move to suppress evidence and move to sever proceedings involving multiple defendants, we also concentrate on the amenability of the juvenile defendant to treatment in the juvenile system. I tailor my defense services to the specific needs and characteristics of your child in the light of the charges he or she is facing.
Crimes typically charged in juvenile court include school crimes such as possession of weapons or fighting, shoplifting, minor in possession (MIP) charges relating to alcohol, or marijuana possession. I also handle cases involving sex between underage minors and other status offenses such as truancy or curfew violations.