When a Juvenile waives his right to counsel said waiver must be both “knowing” and “intelligent”. In a recent case, In Interest of M.M., No. 93857 (Mo. App. E.D., August 31, 2010) the appeals court stated “where a review of the record indicates the waiver of counsel by the juvenile in a delinquency case was not preceded by a discussion of the nature of the charges, the range of allowable punishments, the juvenile’s possible defenses, or other facts essential to a broad understanding of the case, the juvenile was not properly informed and the record does not support a finding of a knowing or intelligent waiver of counsel.”
In my humble opinion, there is no such thing as an “intelligent” waiver of counsel; you have a right to a lawyer so use it!