If your child is facing legal charges, it can be a terrifying thing to deal with. As a parent or guardian, we understand that a child's future hangs in the balance when such situations arise. Knowing the difference between a diversion and a conviction for an effective juvenile defense is helpful. Consult a knowledgeable juvenile law attorney who can help your child throughout the process. 

What Is a Diversion?

A diversion is also known as deferred adjudication. It allows those accused of a crime a second chance, especially those with non-violent offenses. Diversion usually requires joining a specific program or meeting certain requirements. The choice is determined by a judge who analyzes the individual and the crime itself. 

Diversion programs can include:

Parents want the best for their children. So if your child runs into legal trouble, your first instinct is to protect them. In truth, no child deserves lasting consequences for a simple mistake in their youth. If your child has a juvenile record, there are steps you can take toward expungement, especially with the help of a credible juvenile law attorney. 

What Offenses Are Expungeable?

Expungement is a legal procedure that conceals certain criminal records from the public eye. This process offers young people a fresh start in life. It is no secret that a criminal record can cut you off from various opportunities. 

In some cases, expungement is automatically applied. But not everyone has that benefit, and not all juvenile records in Illinois are eligible for expungement. If your child satisfies the requirements listed below, they may qualify: 

If you are a juvenile who has recently been arrested and charged with an offense, you may not know what to expect. If you have heard that your juvenile criminal record is automatically sealed when you reach adulthood, you may feel as if there is nothing to worry about. Your future employers and landlords will likely be unable to see your juvenile record. In fact, publicly, it will appear as if the adjudication of delinquency never happened. However, there are still problems a juvenile criminal record can cause both right away and later in life. You may face issues like getting in trouble at school or not being accepted to your college of choice. Additionally, the judicial penalties can last years, even continuing up until you are 21 years old or older. If you have been charged with a juvenile crime, it is important to take the situation very seriously. An attorney can take steps to begin protecting your future prospects as soon as they are involved on your case. 

Reasons Teens Should Care About a Juvenile Charge 

Although your record will probably be sealed later, a juvenile conviction can still interfere with your life. Reasons you should care about your juvenile criminal case include: 

• Sentencing - If you are adjudicated delinquent, you could face criminal sentencing just like adults do. Your sentence could include so much community service that you will have little time for other things like spending time with friends or keeping up with a hobby. You could even be sent to a juvenile detention center for a period of time. You could also be fined and have to give up any money you are able to earn. 

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Whenever a crime is committed, it is the police who are entrusted with arresting the perpetrator of that crime in order to ensure the community is protected. However, there are far too many investigations where errors are made and the wrong individual is accused. The repercussions of these police errors can be profound, leading to the erosion of an individual’s rights, misidentification of suspects, compromised evidence, and ultimately, a tainted criminal case.

Misidentification and False Accusations

One of the most consequential mistakes made by the police is misidentifying a suspect. Eyewitness misidentification is a well-documented issue, where witnesses may inaccurately identify a person due to flawed memory or suggestive police procedures. These errors can lead to innocent people being wrongfully accused, arrested, and charged with crimes they did not commit. In many of these cases, especially for those defendants who do not have a seasoned criminal lawyer defending them, they are found guilty.

Tainted Evidence and Violation of Rights

Police mistakes can result in the mishandling or contamination of evidence. This may occur due to negligence, lack of proper training, or intentional misconduct. Regardless of why these incidents occur, the integrity of the evidence can be compromised, raising questions about its admissibility in court. Violations of constitutional rights, such as unlawful searches or seizures, can render evidence inadmissible under the exclusionary rule, thus weakening the prosecution's case.

Police can violate your Fourth Amendment rights in an Illinois criminal case when they conduct an illegal search or seizure. The remedy for violating these Constitutional rights is that some evidence may be suppressed and is not able to be used in your case. A court will throw out evidence that is considered the “fruit of the poisonous tree.” A Will County criminal defense attorney can review your case and determine whether to challenge any of the evidence at trial. 

Courts Will Apply an Exclusionary Rule

If a court determines that a search or seizure was illegal, they will not necessarily dismiss the case against you entirely. Instead, the prosecutor would need to proceed without using the illegally acquired evidence. Functionally, it could mean that the prosecutor would need to dismiss their case because they cannot prove it. For example, if drug charges against you depend on drugs that were seized in an illegal search, the prosecutor may not have any other evidence to use.

The Illegal Search Must Be Related to the Evidence Seized

The court would look to see if there is a causal relationship between the search and the evidence that is being challenged. This rule applies not just to the direct evidence, but any evidence that was seized as a result of the search. For example, if the wrongfully taken evidence leads police to other evidence, it would all be suppressed. The poisonous tree is the wrongful search, and the fruit is evidence that resulted from the tree.