Feidlim Gill, Assistant Attorney General, Unit Chief

In 1982, through a legislative act, the Juvenile Prosecution Unit was created for the purpose of the prosecution of delinquent (felony) juvenile offenders. It is the Unit's responsibility to prosecute all felony offenses. In addition, the Unit prosecutes all wayward (misdemeanor) offenses charged by State agencies such as the Rhode Island State Police, the Department for Children, Youth and Families-Probation, and the Department of Environmental Management.

The Unit is responsible for prosecuting juveniles charged with delinquencies (felonies if adults) throughout the five counties: Newport, Washington, Kent, Bristol and Providence. The Unit also prosecutes adults charged with criminal child abuse, neglect and other specific adult offenses, as well as so-called "deadbeat parent" cases.

The different stages of juvenile prosecution begin with an arraignment or emergency arraignment, the probable cause hearing (only if a juvenile is held at the Rhode Island Training School for Youth) and/or pre-trial, and culminate in a trial, waiver or certification hearing.

An emergency arraignment is usually warranted when a juvenile commits a particularly egregious crime or if the respondent has a past record of wayward (misdemeanor) or delinquency (felony) offenses and may currently be on a suspended sentence and/or probation. For less egregious crimes, the respondent may be released by the police department to his or her parents to appear in Family Court for an arraignment on a future date determined by the clerk's office. A juvenile held at the Rhode Island Training School for Youth is entitled to a probable cause hearing, which must be within five days of being held after an emergency arraignment. The next stage of the proceeding is a pre-trial conference. At this conference, the prosecutor and defense attorney, along with the juvenile, will discuss possible dispositions. If a disposition is not agreed upon, the case will pass to trial. At any time during any of the above proceedings, a disposition may be reached and the case settled.