Rethinking a "Knowing, Intelligent, and Voluntary Waiver" in Massachusetts' Juvenile Courts

Like adults, juveniles who plead guilty must do so knowingly, intelligently, and voluntarily. To make well-reasoned and informed decisions, the child must understand the elements of the charges against them and the procedural protections they waive. However, an empirical study of court-involved children revealed that juvenile defendants often do not have a sufficient understanding of the legal terminology used in waiver forms and colloquy to make their pleas truly knowing and intelligent. Researchers developed a list of thirty-six words common to juvenile court proceedings and asked the ninety-eight participants to provide definitions. Participants were split into an “uninstructed group” interviewed in the hallway of a juvenile court and an “instructed group” that completed the questionnaire in a quiet corner and answered more detailed questions about prior court experiences. The study also examined the potential effect of age and ethnicity on knowledge of the terms. Though the instructed group performed better than the uninstructed group, and older participants scored higher than younger ones, the participants on average did not understand eighty-six percent of the terms. The children often mistook the words for similar-sounding words, applied nonlegal definitions, or relied upon incorrect associations. Because it revealed the children’s general lack of understanding, the study raised significant concerns about the validity of juvenile pleas.

“Judges, attorneys, and children all believe that children know more than they actually do about court proceedings and the rights they are waiving during the tendering of a plea. . . . Practices and procedures must be modified to ensure that children accurately understand court proceedings and the ramifications of their decisions when tendering pleas.” p. 14