Closing DJJ

Several implications of the change in law are important to note. These include that:

Youth under 12 cannot be prosecuted except for murder or forcible rape.

Youth under 12 cannot be arrested or detained, as no delinquency or criminal court has jurisdiction over them.

Counties must have a protocol for addressing alternatives to prosecution for youth under 12 by January 1, 2020, even though juvenile court jurisdiction is no longer permissible starting January 1, 2019. In the meantime, counties may individually troubleshoot the circumstances and needs of each individual youth under 12 who otherwise was or may have been under juvenile court jurisdiction.

SB 1391 prohibits the transfer of 14 and 15-year-olds to the adult criminal system.

Allows counties to establish secure youth treatment facilities for wards who are 14 years of age or older who have been adjudicated and found to be a ward of the court based on an offense that would have resulted in a commitment to the Division of Juvenile Justice, as provided. The bill would require the court to set a baseline term of confinement for the ward that is based on the most serious recent offense for which the ward has been adjudicated, as specified. The bill would additionally require the court to set a maximum term of confinement for the ward in a secure youth treatment facility and require the court, within 30 days of making the order of commitment, to receive, review, and approve an individual rehabilitation plan for the ward from the probation department and any other entity that is designated by the court for development of the plan. The bill would require the court to hold a progress review hearing for the ward not less frequently than once every 6 months during the term of confinement, as specified. The bill would authorize the court, at the conclusion of a progress review hearing, or at a separately scheduled hearing, to order a ward to be transferred from a secure youth treatment facility to a less restrictive program. The bill would, by July 1, 2023, require the Judicial Council to develop and adopt a matrix of offense-based classifications to be applied by the juvenile courts in all counties, as specified. The bill would prohibit a court from committing a juvenile to any juvenile facility for a period that exceeds the middle term of imprisonment that could be imposed upon an adult convicted of the same offense or offenses.

Board of State and Community Corrections

Minimum Standards for Juvenile Facilities