GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA

EXTRA SESSION 1994

H	1 

HOUSE BILL 216

Short Title:  Juv./Adult Dist. Ct. Trial.	(Public)
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Sponsors: Representative Ives.
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Referred to:  Judiciary III.
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February 14, 1994

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT TO TRY CERTAIN JUVENILES IN DISTRICT COURT AS IN THE CASE OF ADULTS, TO PROVIDE A PROBABLE CAUSE HEARING, AND TO MAKE CONFORMING CHANGES.
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:
Section 1.  G.S. 7A-608 reads as rewritten:
"§ 7A-608.  Transfer of jurisdiction of juvenile to superior court; trial as adult in district court.
(a)	The court after notice, hearing, and a finding of probable cause may transfer jurisdiction over a juvenile to superior court if the juvenile was 14 years of age or older at the time the juvenile allegedly committed an offense that would be a felony if committed by an adult. If the alleged felony constitutes a Class A felony and the court finds probable cause, the court shall transfer the case to the superior court for trial as in the case of adults.
(b)	The court after notice, hearing, and a finding of probable cause may try a juvenile in district court as in the case of an adult if the juvenile was 14 years of age or older at the time the juvenile allegedly committed an offense that would be a misdemeanor if committed by an adult and if the juvenile has previously been adjudicated delinquent for an offense that would be a felony if committed by an adult."
Sec. 2.  G.S. 7A-609(a) reads as rewritten:
"(a)	The court shall conduct a hearing to determine probable cause in all felony cases in which a juvenile was 14 years of age or older when the offense was allegedly committed and in all misdemeanor cases in which a juvenile has previously been adjudicated delinquent for an offense that would be a felony if committed by an adult and was 14 years of age or older when the offense was allegedly committed. Counsel for the juvenile may waive in writing the right to the hearing and stipulate to a finding of probable cause. The court may exclude the public from the hearing unless the juvenile moves that the hearing be open, which motion shall be granted."
Sec. 3.  G.S. 7A-610(a) reads as rewritten:
"(a)	If probable cause is found, the prosecutor or the juvenile may move that the case be (i) either transferred to the superior court or (ii) retained in district court, for trial as in the case of adults. If the alleged felony does not constitute an offense that would be a Class A felony if committed by an adult, the judge shall determine whether the needs of the juvenile or the best interest of the State will be served by either (i) transfer of the case to superior court or (ii) retention in district court, for trial as in the case of adults. When the case is either (i) transferred to superior court or (ii) retained in district court, for trial as in the case of adults, that court has jurisdiction over that felony, any offense based on the same act or transaction or on a series of acts or transactions connected together or constituting parts of a single scheme or plan of that felony, and any greater or lesser included offense of that felony."
Sec. 4.  G.S. 7A-524 reads as rewritten:
"§ 7A-524. Retention of jurisdiction.
When the court obtains jurisdiction over a juvenile, jurisdiction shall continue until terminated by order of the court or until the juvenile's eighteenth birthday.  Any juvenile who is under the jurisdiction of the court and commits a criminal offense after the juvenile's sixteenth birthday is subject to prosecution as an adult. Any juvenile who is transferred to and sentenced by the superior court or retained in, tried, and sentenced by district court as in the case of adults, shall be prosecuted as an adult for all other crimes alleged to have been committed by the juvenile while under the active supervision of that court. Nothing herein shall be construed to divest the court of jurisdiction in abuse, neglect, or dependency proceedings."
Sec. 5.  G.S. 7A-675(e) reads as rewritten:
"(e)	Law-enforcement records and files concerning a juvenile shall be kept separate from the records and files of adults except in proceedings when jurisdiction of a juvenile is either (i) transferred to superior court or (ii) retained in district court for trial as in the case of adults. Law-enforcement records and files concerning juveniles shall be open only to the inspection of the prosecutor, court counselors, the juvenile, the juvenile's parent, guardian, and custodian."
Sec. 6.  G.S. 7A-596 reads as rewritten:
"§ 7A-596.  Authority to issue nontestimonial identification order where juvenile alleged to be delinquent.
Nontestimonial identification procedures shall not be conducted on any juvenile without a court order issued pursuant to this Article unless the juvenile is to be tried in district or superior court as an adult in which case procedures applicable to adults as set out in Articles 14 and 23 of Chapter 15A shall apply.  A nontestimonial identification order authorized by this Article may be issued by any judge of the district court or of the superior court upon request of a prosecutor. As used in this Article, 'nontestimonial identification' means identification by fingerprints, palm prints, footprints, measurements, blood specimens, urine specimens, saliva samples, hair samples, or other reasonable physical examination, handwriting exemplars, voice samples, photographs, and lineups or similar identification procedures requiring the presence of a juvenile."
Sec. 7.  G.S. 7A-601(4) reads as rewritten:
"(4)	If the juvenile is tried in district or superior court as an adult, all records resulting from nontestimonial identification procedures shall be processed as in the case of an adult."
Sec. 8.  G.S. 7A-608.1 reads as rewritten:
"§ 7A-608.1.  Fingerprinting juvenile transferred to superior court or tried as an adult in district court.
When a juvenile is transferred to the superior court or is tried in district court as an adult, the juvenile shall be fingerprinted and the fingerprints shall be sent to the State Bureau of Investigation."
Sec. 9.  G.S. 7A-611 reads as rewritten:
"§ 7A-611. Right to pretrial release; detention.
Once either (i)	the order of transfer to superior court or (ii) the order to retain in district court, for trial as in the case of adults, has been entered, the juvenile has the right to pretrial release as provided in G.S. 15A-533 and 15A-534. The release order shall specify the person or persons to whom the juvenile may be released. Pending release under this Article, the judge shall order that the juvenile be detained in a local detention home as defined by G.S. 7A-517(15) or a regional detention home as defined by G.S. 7A-517(26) while awaiting trial. The judge may order the juvenile to be held in a holdover facility as defined by G.S. 7A-517(16) at any time the presence of the juvenile is required in court for pretrial hearings or trial, if the judge finds that it would be inconvenient to return the juvenile to the local or regional detention home.
Should the juvenile be found guilty, or enter a plea of guilty or no contest to criminal offenses in district or superior court and the juvenile receives an active sentence, then immediate transfer to the Department of Correction shall be ordered. Until such time as the juvenile is transferred to the Department of Correction, the juvenile may be detained in a holdover facility as defined by G.S. 7A-517(16). The juvenile may not be detained in a local detention home as defined by G.S. 7A-517(15) or a regional detention home as defined by G.S. 7A-517(26) pending transfer to the Department of Correction. The juvenile may be kept by the Department of Correction as a safekeeper until the juvenile is placed in an appropriate correctional program."
Sec. 10.  This act becomes effective July 1, 1994, and applies to offenses committed on or after that date.