A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT to require the department of juvenile justice and delinquency prevention to release the identification of juveniles who escape the custody of the department.
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:
SECTION 1.  G.S. 7B‑2102(d1) is repealed.
SECTION 2.  Article 31 of Chapter 7B of the General Statutes is amended by adding a new section to read:
"§ 7B‑3102. Disclosure of information about juveniles who escape.
(a)	Notwithstanding G.S. 7B-2102(d) or any other law to the contrary, within 24 hours of the time a juvenile escapes from custody the Department shall release to the public the juvenile's name and photograph, and a brief description of the offense for which the juvenile was alleged to have committed or was adjudicated delinquent, if:
(1)	The juvenile escapes from a detention facility, and the juvenile is alleged to have committed an offense that would be a Class A, B1, B2, C, D, or E felony if committed by an adult.
(2)	The juvenile escapes from a youth development center, and the juvenile has been adjudicated delinquent for an offense that would be a felony or a Class A1 misdemeanor if committed by an adult.
(b)	When a juvenile escapes from custody, and the juvenile has been adjudicated for an offense the would be a Class 1, 2, or 3 misdemeanor if committed by an adult, the Department may release to the public within 24 hours the juvenile's name and photograph, and a brief description of the offense for which the juvenile was adjudicated delinquent."SECTION 3.  G.S. 7B‑3100(b) reads as rewritten:
"(b)	Disclosure of information concerning any juvenile under investigation or alleged to be within the jurisdiction of the court that would reveal the identity of that juvenile is prohibited except that publication of pictures of runaways is permitted with the permission of the  parents and except as provided in G.S. 7B‑3102."
SECTION 4.  This act becomes effective October 1, 2007.