"Trying" things our way Brown County Teen Court Process

All Brown County Teen Court referrals come through the Brown County States Attorney's Office. Brown County Teen Court is staffed completely by volunteers. Student volunteers act as attorneys, exit clerks, clerks, and jury duty persons. A local attorney or judge volunteers their time to act as Judge for Teen Court. Adult volunteers oversee the process and day-to-day operations. Teen Court is for first time offenders who have committed misdemeanor offenses. There is a Second Time Offenders Program (S.T.O.P.) within Teen Court, to be offered at the request of the States Attorney's Office. The Brown County States Attorney's Office sends out a letter informing teens and their families of the opportunity to go through Teen Court. They have 10 days to call the Teen Court Coordinator to set up Court, or the case is returned to the States Attorney's Office and the teen is sent through Juvenile Court. Volunteers arrive around 6:00 PM on Teen Court Night to check in the defendants who have not yet completed their sentences. Each defendant is required check-in on Teen Court Nights until the sentence is completed. The defense attorney meets with the defendant and his/her family to prepare them for Court. The first Teen Court starts at 6:30 PM. After the defendant has been sentenced, an Exit Clerk meets with him/her and any family present to explain the sentence. The Exit Clerk will also supervise the completion of the sentence. If a defendant does not complete his/her sentence within 90 days, the case is returned to the State's Attorney's Office and the juvenile will go through the Juvenile Court process. Each month, a Community Service Project is scheduled and supervised by Teen Court Adult Volunteers. Each defendant is sentences to at least one community service project.   Click here to learn more about Brown County Teen Court.