| Massachusetts |
| Lower Age: | 7 |
| Upper Age: | 16 |
| Direct File | Mass. Gen. Laws, Ch. 119, Sec. 54 |
| Cases that meet statutory age/offense criteria may be commenced either in juvenile court (or a juvenile session of district court) or by indictment. A complaint and indictment for a qualifying offense, as well as any other offense properly joined to it, are brought in "the usual course and manner of criminal proceedings." |
| Offense Category | Minimum Age | Offense Detail |
| Certain Felonies | 14 | Any offense punishable by imprisonment if the accused was previously committed to the Department of Youth Services. |
| Person | 14 | Any offense punishable by imprisonment if it involves the infliction or threat of serious bodily harm. |
| Weapon | 14 | Distribution, sale, or transfer of specified quantities of firearms; unlawful carrying of a firearm; possession of a machine gun; and ownership, possession, or carrying of a sawed-off shotgun. |
| Statutory Exclusion | Mass. Gen. Laws, Ch. 119, Sec. 74 |
| The juvenile court has no jurisdiction over a child of at least 14 charged with first or second degree murder. Complaints and indictments for murder, along with any other offense properly joined, are brought in "the usual course and manner of criminal proceedings." |
| Offense Category | Minimum Age | Offense Detail |
| Murder | 14 | First or second degree murder. |