McKeiver v. Pennsylvania

The Court reversed a trend that had granted increasing constitutional protections to minors accused of crimes.

In 1968, 16-year-old Philadelphian Joseph McKeiver was charged with three felony counts. The charges against McKeiver were robbery, larceny, and receiving stolen goods for his role in an action in which a group of 20 to 30 other youths pursued three other youths and robbed them of 25 cents. McKeiver requested a jury trial, but the request was denied. He had no previous record and the two victims' testimony was described as flimsy. A judge in the Juvenile Branch of Philadelphia's Family Court found McKeiver a "delinquent child" and placed him under probation.