Current Status Bill Number:1284 Type of Legislation:General Bill GB Introducing Body:Senate Introduced Date:19960321 Primary Sponsor:Thomas All Sponsors:Thomas Drafted Document Number:pfm\9126ac.96 Companion Bill Number:4818 Residing Body:House Current Committee:Judiciary Committee 25 HJ Date of Last Amendment:19960423 Subject:Juvenile detention facility, fingerprinting of juvenile
Body Date Action Description Com Leg Involved
______ ________ _______________________________________ _______ ____________
House 19960528 Recommitted to Committee 25 HJ
House 19960523 Debate adjourned
House 19960522 Debate adjourned until
Thursday, 19960523
House 19960521 Debate adjourned until
Wednesday, 19960522
House 19960515 Committee report: Favorable 25 HJ
House 19960430 Introduced, read first time, 25 HJ
referred to Committee
Senate 19960425 Read third time, sent to House
Senate 19960423 Amended, read second time
Senate 19960417 Committee report: Favorable with 11 SJ
amendment
Senate 19960321 Introduced, read first time, 11 SJ
referred to Committee
View additional legislative information at the LPITS web site.
Indicates Matter Stricken
Indicates New Matter
COMMITTEE REPORT
May 15, 1996
S. 1284
S. Printed 5/15/96--H.
Read the first time April 30, 1996.
To whom was referred a Bill (S. 1284), to amend Section 20-7-600, as amended, Code of Laws of South Carolina, 1976, relating to taking a child into custody, etc., respectfully
That they have duly and carefully considered the same, and recommend that the same do pass:
JOHN W. TUCKER, JR., for Committee.
TO AMEND SECTION 20-7-600, AS AMENDED, CODE OF LAWS OF SOUTH CAROLINA, 1976, RELATING TO TAKING A CHILD INTO CUSTODY FOR VIOLATING THE LAW, SO AS TO INCLUDE AN ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENT FOR DETENTION IN A SECURE JUVENILE DETENTION FACILITY AND TO PROVIDE SPECIFIC TIME FRAMES FOR REVIEW OF A JUVENILE IN A DETENTION FACILITY; TO AMEND SECTION 20-7-780, AS AMENDED, RELATING TO CONFIDENTIALITY OF JUVENILE RECORDS, FINGERPRINTS, AND PHOTOGRAPHS, SO AS TO EXPAND THE CIRCUMSTANCES UNDER WHICH A JUVENILE MAY BE FINGERPRINTED AND TO EXPAND THE USE OF FINGERPRINTS; AND TO AMEND SECTION 20-7-2170, AS AMENDED, RELATING TO COMMITMENT OF CHILDREN TO THE DEPARTMENT OF JUVENILE JUSTICE AND TRANSFER TO THE DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONS, SO AS TO EXPAND THE CONDITIONS UNDER WHICH THE COURT MAY WAIVE THE TEMPORARY COMMITMENT OF A CHILD TO THE DEPARTMENT FOR EVALUATION.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina:
SECTION 1. Section 20-7-600(F) of the 1976 Code, as last amended by Act 7 of 1995, is further amended to read:
"(F) When the officer who took the child into custody determines that placement of a juvenile outside the home is necessary, the authorized representative of the Department of Juvenile Justice shall make a diligent effort to place the child in an approved home, program, or facility, other than a secure juvenile detention facility, when these alternatives are appropriate and available. A child is eligible for detention in a secure juvenile detention facility only if the child:
(1) is charged with a violent crime as defined in Section 16-1-60;
(2) is charged with a crime which, if committed by an adult, would be a felony other than a violent crime, and the child:
(a) is already detained or on probation or conditional release in connection with another delinquency proceeding;
(b) has a demonstrable recent record of wilful failures to appear at court proceedings;
(c) has a demonstrable recent record of violent conduct resulting in physical injury to others; or
(d) has a demonstrable recent record of adjudications for other felonies; and:
(i) there is reason to believe the child is a flight risk or poses a threat of serious harm to others; or
(ii) the instant offense involved the use of a firearm;
(3) is a fugitive from another jurisdiction;
(4) requests protection in writing under circumstances that present an immediate threat of serious physical injury;
(5) had in his possession a deadly weapon;
(6) has a demonstrable recent record of wilful failure to comply with prior placement orders including, but not limited to, a house arrest order.;
(7) has no suitable alternative placement and it is determined that detention is in the child's best interest or is necessary to protect the child or public, or both.
A child who meets the criteria provided in this subsection is eligible for detention. Detention is not mandatory for a child meeting the criteria if that child can be supervised adequately at home or in a less secure setting or program. If the officer does not consent to the release of the child, the parents or other responsible adult may apply to any judge of the family court within the circuit for an ex parte order of release of the child. The officer's written report must be furnished to the family court judge. The family court judge who may establish conditions for such release."
SECTION 2. Section 20-7-600(H) of the 1976 Code, as last amended by Act 7 of 1995, is further amended to read:
"(H) If the officer who took the child into custody has not released the child to the custody of his the child's parents or other responsible adult, the court shall hold a detention hearing within forty-eight hours from the time the child was taken into custody, excluding Saturdays, Sundays, and holidays. At this hearing, the authorized representative of the department shall submit to the court a report stating the facts surrounding the case and a recommendation as to the child's continued detention pending the adjudicatory and dispositional hearings. The court shall appoint counsel for the child if none is retained. No child may proceed without counsel in this hearing, unless the child waives the right to counsel, and then only after consulting at least once with an attorney. At the conclusion of this hearing, the court shall determine whether probable cause exists to justify the detention of the child as well as determining and the appropriateness of, and need for, the child's continued detention. If continued detention of a juvenile is considered appropriate by the court and if a juvenile detention facility exists in that county which meets state and federal requirements for the secure detention of juveniles, or if that facility exists in another county with which the committing county has a contract for the secure detention of its juveniles, and if commitment of a juvenile by the court to that facility does not cause it the facility to exceed its design and operational capacity, the family court shall order the detention of the juvenile in that facility. Periodic reviews of the detention order must be conducted in accordance with the rules of practice in a family court. However, A juvenile must not be detained in secure confinement in excess of ninety days except in exceptional circumstances as determined by the court. A detained juvenile is entitled to further and periodic review:
(1) within ten days following the juvenile's initial detention hearing;
(2) within thirty days following the ten-day hearing; and
(3) at any other time for good cause shown upon motion of the child, the State, or the department.
If the child does not qualify for detention or otherwise require continued detention under the terms of subsection (F), the child must be released to a parent, guardian, or other responsible person."
SECTION 3. The last paragraph of Section 20-7-780(C) of the 1976 Code, as last amended by Act 7 of 1995, is further amended to read:
"The Department of Juvenile Justice may fingerprint and photograph a juvenile upon the filing of a petition, release from detention, release on house arrest, or commitment to a juvenile correctional institution. Fingerprints and photographs taken by the department of Juvenile Justice remain confidential and must not be transmitted to the State Law Enforcement Division, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, or another agency or person, except for the purpose of aiding the department in apprehending an escapee from the department, assisting the Missing Persons Information Center in the location or and identification of a missing or runaway child, in locating and identifying a child who fails to appear in court as summoned or who is the subject of a house arrest order, or except as otherwise provided in this section."
SECTION 4. Section 20-7-2170(D) of the 1976 Code, as last amended by Act 83 of 1995, is further amended to read:
"(D) The court, before committing a child as a delinquent or as a part of a sentence including commitments for contempt, first temporarily shall commit temporarily the child to the Department of Juvenile Justice for a period not to exceed more than forty-five days for evaluation, and the department shall make a recommendation to the court before final commitment disposition. The committing judge court may waive in writing temporary commitment for evaluation if the child in cases where:
(1) the child concerned either, within the past year, has been evaluated by a center and the evaluation is available to the court; or
(2) has been, within the past year, temporarily or finally discharged or conditionally released or paroled for parole from a correctional institution of the department of Juvenile Justice, and the child's previous evaluation or other equivalent information is available to the court.; or
(3) the child receives a determinate commitment sentence not to exceed ninety days.
All commitments to the custody of the department of Juvenile Justice for delinquency as opposed to the conviction of a specific crime may be made only for the reasons and in the manner prescribed in Sections 20-7-400, 20-7-410, 20-7-430, 20-7-460, 20-7-600, 20-7-620, 20-7-740, 20-7-750, 20-7-760, 20-7-770, 20-7-780, 20-7-1330, 20-7-1340, and 20-7-1520, with evaluations made and proceedings conducted only by the judges authorized to order commitments in this section. When a child is committed to the custody of the department under the proceedings, commitment must be for an indeterminate sentence, not extending beyond the twenty-first birthday of the child unless sooner released by the department, or for a determinate commitment sentence not to exceed ninety days."
SECTION 5. This act takes effect upon approval by the Governor.