The juvenile legal culture that is North Carolina

The 6-year-old dangled his legs above the floor as he sat at the table with his defense attorney, before a North Carolina judge.

He was accused of picking a tulip from a yard at his bus stop, his attorney Julie Boyer said, and he was on trial in juvenile court for injury to real property.

The boy’s attention span was too short to follow the proceedings, Boyer said, so she handed him crayons and a coloring book.

“I asked him to color a picture,” she said, “so he did.”

He didn’t know it, but no matter what the judge decided, the experience could change the boy’s life, experts say, from how he sees the court system to increasing his chance of getting into trouble again and being sent to alternative school.

Seems crazy!  By the way, 82% of the complaints were against boys.  Via Anecdotal.

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