Your Child's Future Is Worth Fighting For

Florida handles most criminal cases involving minors under the age of 18 through the Department of Juvenile Justice (DJJ) rather than the adult criminal court system. While the juvenile system is designed with rehabilitation in mind, a delinquency adjudication can still carry serious consequences — including detention, probation, mandatory programs, and a juvenile record that can affect your child's education, employment, and future opportunities.

In some cases, the State can even seek to transfer your child's case to adult court, where adult criminal penalties apply. Having an experienced juvenile defense attorney in your child's corner from the very beginning is critical.

The process can move quickly, and understanding it is the first step:

Intake & Assessment — After an arrest, a DJJ intake officer will assess your child and make a recommendation on release or detention.

Detention Hearing — If your child is held, a hearing must occur within 24 hours to determine whether detention continues.

Petition & Arraignment — The State Attorney decides whether to file a delinquency petition. Your child will have the opportunity to enter an admission or denial.

Adjudicatory Hearing — This is the juvenile equivalent of a trial. A judge — not a jury — determines whether your child committed the alleged offense.

Disposition — If adjudicated delinquent, the judge determines the appropriate consequences, which can range from diversion programs and probation to commitment to a juvenile facility.

Attorney Parker will be with your family at every stage, ensuring your child's rights are protected and pursuing every available avenue for the best possible outcome.

One of the most important things a skilled juvenile defense attorney can do is work to keep your child's record clean — or minimize what ends up on it. Florida law provides mechanisms to seal or expunge certain juvenile records, but eligibility depends heavily on the outcome of the case. The decisions made now can directly affect whether your child qualifies for record relief later.

Attorney Parker understands how to pursue diversionary alternatives, negotiate with prosecutors, and advocate at disposition hearings in ways that preserve your child's options for the future.

Richard B. Parker is a Florida Bar Board Certified Criminal Trial Lawyer — a distinction earned by fewer than 1% of Florida attorneys, recognizing special expertise, ethics, and professionalism in criminal law. As a former prosecutor, he knows how the State builds its cases and exactly what it takes to challenge them.

Attorney Parker has spent over a decade defending clients in Orange County, Seminole County, and throughout Central Florida — including parents and families who have trusted him with their children's cases. He will take the time to explain every stage of the process, answer your questions honestly, and fight tirelessly for the outcome your family deserves.