Skip Ribbon Commands
Skip to main content
An Official Pennsylvania Government Website
Translate
Begin Main Content Area

Determination of Juvenile Court Jurisdiction

Answer
expand Question : Who decides if the juvenile court has jurisdiction and how do they make that decision? ‎(1)
The district attorney or the juvenile probation officer makes that decision. The general rule is that the juvenile offender must be less than 18 years old at the time of the offense and the crime must be a misdemeanor or felony. Some serious crimes may result in adult charges for juveniles 14 years of age or older.