Lancaster County officials are in the process of prosecuting a 10-year-old New Holland girl — believed to be the youngest defendant ever charged here with a felony sex crime.

The girl was charged Wednesday with aggravated indecent assault for allegedly fondling two 4-year-old girls at her family's home.

Two days later, the accused was committed to Lancaster County Youth Intervention Center.

Next, a series of hearings will be held to determine innocence or guilt and whether the girl should be kept under supervision, officials said.

Rulings on the girl's delinquency and her subsequent disposition should be made in roughly a month, they said.

Officials close to the case spoke Monday about how a juvenile is processed through the criminal justice system.

They said the New Holland girl isn't the first 10-year-old charged here with a crime, but the severity of the charge makes her case unusual, if not unique.

"I don't ever recall someone being referred for a sex offense at 10," said David Mueller, director of the county's juvenile probation department. Mueller has worked in the department since 1990 and has directed it since 2001.

His department approved an accusation document filed by New Holland police and is a key player in the girl's prosecution.

According to officials, no one under age 10 can be charged with a crime in Pennsylvania.

"We hardly ever get 10-year-olds referred to our office," said Mueller, who estimated that about one or two children of that age are charged each year, usually with minor crimes.

Drew Fredericks, executive director of the county's Youth Intervention Center on Sunnyside Peninsula, said the girl is the youngest of about 58 residents at the center.

"We've had our share of 10-year-olds," Fredericks said, "but the average population age is about 16."

Residents at YIC are separated and housed by age and gender — each with his or her own room and bed, Fredericks said.

Accused sex offenders are housed with the general population but are restricted in some ways, Fredericks said. For example, they shower and use bathroom facilities alone. Other residents shower among small groups of the same gender and are allowed to use the bathrooms along with other juveniles.

The YIC serves as a "holding area" until the residents are sentenced — or acquitted — by a county judge, Fredericks said.

The average stay for a resident is about 12 days, Fredericks said, but some have stayed for as long as eight months.

There is no such thing as bail or bond in the juvenile system, officials said. Ideally, they said, a resident who goes through the process and is found delinquent will be transferred within a month.

The process is designed for a swift resolution.

A quicker run through the court system increases chances of rehabilitation, Mueller said.

"Considering the age of a juvenile, sitting six months waiting for a (hearing) is a big chunk of their life," he said.

Should the 10-year-old girl — or any juvenile — be found guilty, the probation department recommends a transfer destination.

There are several penalty options for juveniles who plead guilty or are found guilty at a bench trial.

They include foster care; release to family with electronic monitoring; a group home with other juvenile offenders; or, for the most severe cases, a state facility.

"The end of the line would be a secure (state) facility with a fence and locked doors," Mueller said.

Juveniles aren't sentenced to specific terms; they are released after officials — including those in the probation department — deem them rehabilitated.

The typical juvenile found guilty in Lancaster County spends between nine and 12 months away from home, officials said.

The process is geared toward the juvenile offender's benefit, officials say.

"So they can stop committing crimes and being a threat to the community," Mueller said, "and to develop competencies they may be lacking."

E-mail: bhambright@lnpnews.com