The philosophy and goals of Connecticut's juvenile justice system is "grounded in the concepts of restorative justice, emphasizing protection of the community, offender accountability, and rehabilitation."

-- Connecticut's Juvenile Justice Advisory Committee

• Note that arrests decreased by 16.4% since 1996, while commitments to detention increased 17.8%.
• The Superior Court for Juvenile Matters has jurisdiction over all cases concerning the behavior and custody of uncared for, neglected and dependent, and delinquent youth under the age of 16 within the state.
• Many judges in Connecticut's juvenile court have little to no training in adolescent development and rotate at least annually between the juvenile and adult courts.
• There are no jury trials for juveniles in Connecticut.

• Juveniles age 14 or 15 charged with a Class A or B felony, or arson murder are automatically transferred to adult court. A prosecutor may also request the transfer of a juvenile to adult court in cases involving charges of a Class C or D felony or an unclassified felony. A felony is as an offense for which a person is sentenced to a term of imprisonment for more than one year.
• Proceedings involving a Class B felony and the "discretionary transfers" may be returned to juvenile court upon an order from the adult court.
• Juveniles whose cases have been transferred to adult court are fully subject to adult sanctions including being held in an adult correctional facility.

A study of minority overrepresentation in Connecticut's juvenile justice system revealed that of juveniles transferred to adult court, Black and Hispanic juveniles were more likely than white juveniles to:

• Be detained before disposition (Hispanic 54%; Black 35%; White 13%)
• Receive jail/prison time from adult court (Black 54%;Hispanic 38%;White 14%)
• Be committed to Long Lane School if their cases was returned to Juvenile Matters Court.