What must occur before a juvenile can be found delinquent under NH RSA 169-B:2?

For a juvenile to be found delinquent under the New Hampshire Revised Statutes Annotated (RSA) 169-B:2, it is required that the offense committed be classified as either a felony or a misdemeanor. This legal framework establishes a threshold where certain actions qualify as delinquent conduct. The differentiation between offenses is crucial, as it reflects the seriousness of the behavior for which the juvenile may be held accountable.

This requirement aligns with the intent of the juvenile justice system, which aims to address and rehabilitate youth offenders rather than punish them as adults. By focusing on felonies and misdemeanors, the system recognizes a need to categorize offenses based on severity and ensures that only specific behaviors result in a delinquency finding.

Other considerations like age or the provision of counseling may play critical roles in the juvenile justice process, but they do not directly affect the fundamental requirement for a delinquency finding as articulated in the statute. Hence, it's essential to understand that the classification of the offense itself is the primary determinant before adjudicating a juvenile as delinquent.