RT Article T1 Passing the Threshold of One Justice System to the Next: Challenges of Emerging Young Adults in Hong Kong’s Adult Criminal Justice Process JF International journal of offender therapy and comparative criminology VO 62 IS 9 SP 2650 OP 2668 A1 Cheng, Kevin Kwok-yin A1 Leung, Becky Po-Yee LA English YR 2018 UL https://krimdok.uni-tuebingen.de/Record/1588182452 AB In many criminal justice systems, there is a clear separation for juvenile and adult defendants. However, those in between, referred to as emerging young adult defendants (ages 18-25 years), are treated as adult defendants despite a growing recognition that emerging adulthood is a distinct period in the life course. The aim of this present study is to investigate the experiences and challenges faced by emerging young adult defendants (N = 25) in Hong Kong’s adult criminal justice process. Through in-depth semistructured interviews, it was found that emerging young adult defendants demonstrated a lack of understanding regarding their rights and the legal procedures, faced stress in being caught up in the criminal justice process, and were susceptible to influence by others, particularly family members, in making legal decisions. Implications and future directions of study are discussed. K1 Emerging adults K1 Criminal justice process K1 Criminal procedure K1 Criminal defendants K1 Court K1 Young offenders K1 Jugendliche Straftäter DO 10.1177/0306624X17723640