Do you have a passionate teenager who wants to make a difference when they see injustice? This can make any parent proud and inspired by their offspring. But what if their passion exposes them to legal trouble?
In recent years, protesting has become a significant avenue for individuals, including teenagers, to fight for justice and advocate for causes that are close to their hearts. While most of these peaceful protests start out peacefully, many of them can sometimes escalate due to the tension in the atmosphere. A chaotic protest can quickly lead to instances of vandalism and other unlawful activities. The thought of your teenager being charged with vandalism due to a few opportunistic individuals’ unlawful actions can be worrisome.
Vandalism and protests
Vandalism is the deliberate damage of a property. Here’s the thing, individuals have the right to protest to make their voice heard about an issue affecting their community. However, protests are supposed to be a peaceful march without any property destruction.
However, if a protest turns chaotic and businesses bear the brunt, individuals in the crowd might be arrested for vandalism. In the heat of the moment, your teenager may be incentivized to:
- Throw a rock through a store window
- Use spray paint to draw graffiti on a business’s walls
- Damage a vehicle
- Deface a public property
Your teenager might do these things, assuming that if everyone else is doing it, they can do it too. They may also use this as an opportunity to release any frustrations they may have about their reasons for protesting.
They may not know that vandalism is actually a criminal act that they can be punished for under the law. By the time they’re getting arrested, it may be too late for them to take back their actions and be educated about proper protesting etiquette. What should you do when you receive the heartbreak that your passionate teenager has been arrested for vandalism while on a march for a course they deeply care about? Will this one-time lack of proper judgment cost them juvenile detention, or might they be lucky to get off with community service?
The truth of the matter is that even passionate and well-intentioned teenagers can make mistakes that can land them in legal trouble. If your justice-seeking teen gets arrested for vandalism during a protest, they can benefit from a rigorous legal defense. Your teenager has rights and options under the law, and a reliable legal team can help protect them.