California Welfare & Institutions Code 602 WIC – Jurisdiction of Juvenile Court

Welfare and Institutions Code 602 WIC is the California statute that details the jurisdiction of juvenile court.

California juvenile court presides over:

• delinquency cases involving children ages 12 to 17 and
• some children under 12 accused of murder or certain sex crimes.

The full text of Welfare and Institutions Code 602 WIC is as follows:

Persons subject to jurisdiction of juvenile court and to adjudication as ward for violation of law or ordinance defining crime

(a) Except as provided in Section 707, any minor who is between 12 years of age and 17 years of age, inclusive, when he or she violates any law of this state or of the United States or any ordinance of any city or county of this state defining crime other than an ordinance establishing a curfew based solely on age, is within the jurisdiction of the juvenile court, which may adjudge the minor to be a ward of the court.

(b) Any minor who is under 12 years of age when he or she is alleged to have committed any of the following offenses is within the jurisdiction of the juvenile court, which may adjudge the minor to be a ward of the court:

(1) Murder.

(2) Rape by force, violence, duress, menace, or fear of immediate and unlawful bodily injury.

(3) Sodomy by force, violence, duress, menace, or fear of immediate and unlawful bodily injury.

(4) Oral copulation by force, violence, duress, menace, or fear of immediate and unlawful bodily injury.

(5) Sexual penetration by force, violence, duress, menace, or fear of immediate and unlawful bodily injury.

Legal Analysis of WIC 602

California’s juvenile court system hears delinquency cases for children ages 12 to 17. The state can also make these children wards of the court, which means the court can take primary responsibility for their treatment. (In the most serious cases, minors get transferred to adult criminal court.)

Most children under 12 fall outside of the jurisdiction of juvenile court. There are only two exceptions for minors 11 and younger:

1. The child was accused of murder; or
2. The child was accused of committing one of the following crimes by force, violence, duress, menace, or fear of immediate and unlawful bodily injury:
   • rape,
   • sodomy,
   • oral copulation, and/or
   • sexual penetration.

Consequently, most minors under the age of 12 are not eligible to become wards of the court. Counties instead rely on community-based services to rehabilitate the youngest lawbreakers.¹

Juvenile Court can be traumatic. It also carries a stigma. Plus the sooner a child enters the court system, re-offending is more likely. WIC 602 ensures that the earliest child offenders receive more constructive treatment methods with the goal to keep them from returning to the juvenile court system.

Many children made wards of the court can still live at home under probation supervision.

Frequently Asked Questions

What happens to a child under 12 who commits a crime not listed in WIC 602?

If a child under 12 commits a California crime that is not murder or a forcible sex offense, the juvenile court does not have jurisdiction to try them as a delinquent. Instead of facing a judge, the child is typically referred to community-based organizations, behavioral health services, or the school system for counseling and support.

In cases involving abuse or neglect at home, the matter might be referred to the dependency court under WIC 300, but not for criminal punishment.

Can a minor charged under WIC 602 be tried as an adult?

Yes, but only under specific circumstances. While WIC 602 covers most California juvenile crimes, Welfare and Institutions Code 707 WIC allows prosecutors to request that minors aged 16 or 17 be transferred to adult criminal court if they are accused of serious or violent felonies.

A judge must hold a transfer hearing to decide if the minor can be rehabilitated in the juvenile system. If the judge decides they cannot, the case moves to adult court.

What does it mean to be made a “ward of the court”?

Being adjudged a “ward of the court” in California means the juvenile court takes legal responsibility for the minor’s control and treatment.

It does not necessarily mean the child is taken away from their parents. In many cases, the child becomes a ward but lives at home under “probation” supervision.

However, in more serious cases, the court may remove the child from the home and place them in a foster home, a probation camp, or a Secure Youth Treatment Facility (SYTF).

Will a WIC 602 petition stay on my child’s record forever?

Not necessarily. Juvenile records in California are generally confidential, and most minors are eligible to have their records sealed after they successfully complete probation.

Under WIC 786, if a minor satisfactorily completes their probation or diversion program, the court must dismiss the petition and seal the records automatically. Once sealed, the offense is deemed to have never occurred, and the young person can legally say they have no criminal record.

WIC 602 gives California juvenile court jurisdiction over children ages 12 to 17 (with some exceptions) accused of violating the law.

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