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The Revision Of Virginia's Juvenile Court Law, Lelia Baum Hopper, Frank M. Slayton

University of Richmond Law Review

Since 1899, the year in which the state of Illinois established a separate statutory framework for addressing the problems of children before the courts, the juvenile justice system has been struggling to establish its identity in the jurisprudence of the United States. The juvenile court laws of this country, including those of the Commonwealth of Virginia, have historically been based on the doctrine of "parens patriae", which is formally defined as the "sovereign power of guardianship over persons under disability."' According to this doctrine, the state, through the court system, can be trusted to fulfill its obligation with respect to …