Second year of Teen Court in Warren County court

BOWLING GREEN, Ky. – A place for some to truly be judged by a jury of their peers – the teen court program in Warren County swore in 115 high schoolers today, which is up from the 65 they had last year.

Teen Court is a free statewide program led by an official judge with high school students of that particular area serving as jurors, bailiffs and attorneys to help youth experience law in an impactful and personal way.

The program handles real juvenile cases that are usually out of high school, ranging from criminal trespassing to possession of marijuana.

They recommend constructive sentences, like anger management or community service, to help other youth keep their record clean and help everyone involved foster positive attitudes toward law enforcement, society and themselves.

This not only does a service to the juvenile offender but helps participants on the other side to experience what it’s like to be part of the legal process, maybe even budding into a career path of interest.

Students returning to the program said to News 40 that they have learned a great deal of empathy for fellow students who are going through this kind of court as well as gained experience in the realm of law.

Warren County district judge Kim Geoghegan said, “Students who participate in this program have built confidence” and are growing their public speaking skills.

Geoghegan also said that the participants see “what led that student to make that bad decision in that particular case and learn that some of these students face many challenging circumstances and have a lot of difficult obstacles to overcome.”