Q: My brother is a minor being charged with a felony as an adult. Is there a way to reverse it to a juvenile case?
He has not had any psychological testing, is there any way to get a motion to get a psychological evaluation?
A:
This depends on how old your brother is and the severity of the crime. If your brother is 16 or 17, it's not uncommon at all to be charged as an adult. In fact, there is no minimum age to be charged as an adult; children as young as 10 have been charged as adults. More commonly, if your brother is like 14-15, and the charge is serious (e.g. armed robbery, assault/GBH, murder), then I would imagine the prosecutor filed the appropriate paperwork to have him charged as an adult due to the severity of the crime, and that decision will probably stick.
Depending on a number of facts, your brother could end up with what's called a blended sentence: he will have an adult sentence, but will remain in the juvenile system until he is 19 or violates a probation condition. He will have an opportunity to show to the court that being locked up in an adult prison is not necessary; if he turns 19 and the reports indicate at that time that he is not rehabilitated, then the judge will send him to prison for the remainder of his sentence. It is also possible for him to get a straight adult sentence. The Thumb Correctional Facility houses most of the youthful offenders.
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