When can minors be tried as adults in California?

In California, minors 15 or younger cannot be tried as adults. Minors aged 16 or 17 can be transferred from juvenile court to criminal court only if:

• the crime was “serious,” and
• the juvenile court judge allows the transfer after holding a “fitness hearing.”

If the child was 14 or 15 at the time of the alleged crime, but was not apprehended until they were at least 18, they can also be tried as an adult.

Minors tried as adults face severe punishments upon conviction, including jail or prison time. In contrast, California’s juvenile justice system focuses on rehabilitation over punishment.

What are “serious” crimes?

In California, 16- and 17-year-olds may be tried as adults for the most “serious crimes,” which are listed in California Welfare and Institutions Code 707 WIC.

“Serious crimes” predictably include the homicide offenses of murder and voluntary manslaughter. They also include the following violent offenses:

• aggravated mayhem,
• assault likely to produce great bodily injury, or with a firearm or destructive device,
• attempted murder,
• carjacking while armed,
• causing an explosion to commit murder,
• discharge of a firearm into an inhabited building,
• drive-by shooting,
• kidnapping with bodily harm, for ransom, sexual assault, or robbery, or during a carjacking,
• robbery,
• torture,
• using a firearm or deadly weapon for a felony,
• using force and causing an injury while escaping confinement,
• violent crimes against seniors, and
• violent felony offenses while with a gang.

“Serious crimes” also comprises the following sex crimes:

• rape through force, violence, or threat,
• sodomy or oral copulation through force, duress, menace, or threat,
• lewd acts on a child or dependent, and
• forcible acts of sexual penetration with a foreign object.

Finally, “serious crimes” also include:

• arson,
• intimidating or bribing a witness, and
• manufacturing or selling certain controlled substances.

Remember, just because a 16- or 17-year-old is charged with a “serious crime” does not automatically mean they will be transferred to criminal court. The judge also has to approve the transfer at a “fitness hearing,” which is more likely if the crime involves “aggravating circumstances” such as:

• causing serious bodily injury,
• gang activity,
• lying in wait, premeditation, or extreme recklessness,
• torture, and
• using weapons.¹

A fitness hearing is where juvenile court judges determine whether to transfer juveniles to criminal court in California.

The Fitness Hearing

The fitness hearing, also known as a transfer hearing, is where a California juvenile court judge decides whether a 16- or 17-year-old is “fit” for the juvenile justice system or should be transferred to criminal court.

The prosecutor initiates a transfer hearing by filing a motion in juvenile court. At the hearing, both the prosecution and defense have the opportunity to present arguments and evidence.

In deciding whether to transfer a 16- or 17-year old child to adult court, the juvenile court judge will weigh five factors:

1. the degree of criminal sophistication that the child showed during the criminal offense,
2. whether rehabilitation is likely before the child turns 18,
3. the child’s prior history of juvenile delinquency,
4. whether prior rehabilitation has worked, and
5. the circumstances and seriousness (“severity and nature”) of the alleged offense.²

The juvenile probation officer also prepares a report for the judge to consider, which includes background information such as the child’s school records, behavioral history, and social history.

In our experience, judges rarely permit juveniles to be transferred to adult court. According to the California Department of Justice, in 2023 there were only 36 fitness hearings, which resulted in just 12 juveniles being transferred to adult court. That year 32,047 juveniles were arrested.³

Minors ages 16 or 17 can be transferred to adult court in California if they commit a serious crime and the judge allows the transfer.

Juvenile Court vs. Adult Court

One key difference between juvenile and adult courts in California is that in juvenile court, there are no juries. The judge makes all the decisions.

In addition, minors cannot be “convicted” or “found guilty” in juvenile court like they can in a criminal case. Instead, the juvenile court judge “sustains the petition” by the district attorney.

Finally, juvenile court aims to rehabilitate children through rehabilitation, counseling, and community service. Detention in a juvenile hall is last resort, though even in custody children receive treatment to help them get back on track for adulthood.

Although adult court also offers alternative sentencing through probation and diversion programs, there is more of an emphasis on punishment in the form of fines and jail or prison sentences. Plus, a conviction results in a criminal record, which can prevent the minor from being accepted to college or certain professions.

The most severe punishment in juvenile court cases is detention in a juvenile hall.

Recent Changes in California Law

The age at which a minor child can be tried as an adult for a crime in California has changed several times in the past few years.

In 2000, California voters passed Proposition 21, which:

• gave prosecutors the discretion to try minors under the age of 18 as adults and
• required prosecutors to try minors 14 or older as adults for certain crimes, like murder and serious sex crimes.⁴

In 2016, Proposition 57 repealed Prop 21 and gave juvenile court judges the discretion to transfer minors 14 or over to adult court.

In 2018, Senate Bill 1391 went into effect. This new law:

• forbade prosecutors from trying a minor as an adult if they were under 16 at the time of the offense, unless they were not apprehended until they were 18,
• clarified which offenses could lead to a 16- or 17-year-old being tried as an adult, and
• required the juvenile court judge to agree to transfer the minor to adult court.⁵

In 2021, the California Supreme Court ruled that Senate Bill 1391 merely amended – and did not violate – Prop 57.⁶ This is where the law stands now.

Very few juveniles get transferred to adult court in California.

Additional Resources

You can find help and guidance at the following:

• Center of Juvenile and Criminal Justice – A nonprofit with the mission of reducing society’s reliance on incarceration as a solution to social problems.
• Ella Baker Center Books Not Bars Campaign – An organization that works to shift resources from punishment and towards rehabilitation.
• Youth Law Center – Advocates working to transform foster care and juvenile justice systems.
• Juvenile Law Center – Nonprofit, public interest law firm working to lessen the harm of the child welfare and justice systems.

Legal References