Substitute Senate Bill No. 504
Public Act No. 19-110
AN ACT CONCERNING TH E SUSPENSION OF DELI NQUENCY
PROCEEDINGS FOR TREA TMENT OR OTHER SERVI CES IN
MOTOR VEHICLE THEFT OR MISUSE CASES AND CONCERNING
DETENTION OF JUVENILES.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General
Assembly convened:
Section 1. (NEW) (Effective October 1, 2019) (a) For purposes of this
section: (1) "Delinquency offense involving a motor vehicle" means any
offense under (A) subdivision (1) of subsection (a) of section 53a-119b
of the general statutes, (B) section 53a-126a of the general statutes, (C)
section 53a-126b of the general statutes, when the property consists of
a motor vehicle, (D) subdivision (3) of subsection (a) of section 53a-122
of the general statutes, (E) subdivision (1) of subsection (a) of section
53a-123 of the general statutes, or (F) subdivision (1) of subsection (a)
of section 53a-124 of the general statutes; and (2) "child" means child,
as defined in section 46b-120 of the general statutes.
(b) The court, on motion of a child charged with a delinquency
offense involving a motor vehicle for which such child is not yet
adjudicated as delinquent, may order the suspension of the
delinquency proceedings for a period of up to six months and order
the child to participate in services to address any condition or behavior
directly related to such offense during the period of suspension if the Substitute Senate Bill No. 504
Public Act No. 19-110 2 of 4
court, after consideration of the information before it, finds (1) the
child is likely to benefit from supervision and participation in the
recommended services, and (2) the suspension of the delinquency
proceedings will advance the interests of justice. Such motion shall be
filed with the court not later than ten days after a plea is entered,
except if waived by the court or pursuant to an agreement by the
parties.
(c) As a condition of eligibility for suspension of prosecution, the
child shall agree to: (1) Cooperate with an assessment to determine
whether such child would benefit from supervision and services; (2)
participate in and satisfactorily complete the recommended services;
and (3) comply with any orders of the court. During the period of
suspension of the delinquency proceedings, a child shall be placed
under the supervision of a juvenile probation officer and such officer
shall monitor the compliance of such child with the orders of the court.
Any assessment conducted pursuant to this section shall be used only
for the purposes of determining the appropriate services and whether
the delinquency proceedings should be suspended under this section.
Any out-of-pocket costs of such treatment or other services shall be
paid by the child's parent or guardian unless such costs are waived by
the court upon a finding that such parent or guardian is indigent.
(d) If the court denies the motion for suspension of the delinquency
proceedings, the prosecutorial official may proceed with the
delinquency proceedings. Any order of the court granting or denying a
motion for suspension of the delinquency proceedings shall not be
deemed a final order for purposes of appeal.
(e) At any time before the end of the period of the suspension of the
delinquency proceedings, but not later than one month before the end
of the period of suspension, a juvenile probation officer shall notify the
court of the impending conclusion of the suspension and submit a
report on whether the child has completed the treatment or other Substitute Senate Bill No. 504
Public Act No. 19-110 3 of 4
services and has complied with all other conditions of the suspension
order imposed by the court and, if not, whether the suspension period
should be extended to allow additional time for the child to complete
the recommended services.
(f) If the court, on motion of the child or on its own motion, finds
that the child has completed the treatment or other services and has
complied with all other conditions of suspension of the delinquency
proceedings, the court may dismiss the charge for which the
delinquency proceedings had been suspended. If the court finds that
the child has not completed the treatment or other services, has not
complied with all other conditions of suspension and additional time
is needed to complete the treatment or other services, the court may
extend the suspension period for up to an additional six months. If the
court denies the motion and terminates the suspension of the
delinquency proceedings, the prosecutorial official may proceed with
such proceedings.
(g) The provisions of this section shall not apply to any child
charged with a serious juvenile offense, as defined in section 46b-120
of the general statutes, or any child who was previously granted
suspension of prosecution pursuant to subsection (b) of this section.
(h) The Judicial Branch shall (1) collect and annually examine data
relating to the suspension of delinquency proceedings pursuant to this
section, (2) disaggregate such data by demographics of the children for
whom such delinquency proceedings were suspended, offense
characteristics, and treatment and service outcomes, and (3) report
such data upon request.
Sec. 2. Section 46b-133 of the general statutes is amended by adding
subsection (k) as follows (Effective July 1, 2019):
(NEW) (k) For purposes of subsections (c) and (e) of this section, a Substitute Senate Bill No. 504
Public Act No. 19-110 4 of 4
child may be determined to pose a risk to public safety if such child
has previously been adjudicated as delinquent for or convicted of or
pled guilty or nolo contendere to two or more felony offenses, has had
two or more prior dispositions of probation and is charged with
commission of a larceny under subdivision (3) of subsection (a) of
section 53a-122 or subdivision (1) of subsection (a) of section 53a-123 or
subdivision (1) of subsection (a) of section 53a-124.