Juvenile

Weekly Report 11/07/2017 to 11/13/2017

This week, I met with Judge Kimberly McCary for the Denton County Juvenile Detention Court. One of the greatest takeaways that I received from this interview was Ms. McCary’s ability to raise children through her career. I had asked if being a judge was conducive to having a family, but she told me that, although she has no children of her own, the youth who come through her court have become kids who she keeps up with and does her best to award strength-based sentences. Ms. McCary explained that she does not believe in bad kids, just good kids who make bad choices. However, she does her best to analyze the context surrounding the crime and pull out their strengths in order to make rehabilitation possible for these children.

I really respect her method of making rulings on each case, and her choice to devote her life to helping these children get back on their feet. I was also surprised by how energetic and friendly Ms. McCary was; she told me that she, along with all of the Denton County Juvenile Detention Center staff work their hardest to stay positive and upbeat so that the kids who come through feel at ease and not like criminals. I thought this was exceptionally nice, given that many young people can easily become misguided, so this judge makes a point to help them get back on track and start clean. This interview pleasantly surprised me; not only did I enjoy learning about the technicalities of Ms. McCary’s career and how political her role is, but I was so humbled to see her grace and compassion for these children. This drastically changed my perspective on what the law is all about; juvenile court may be an area that I should look deeper into, so in my upcoming research assessments, I would like to learn more about the comparison between juvenile and adult criminal courts and focus on the service aspect of each.