2016 Regular Session ENROLLED
SENATE BILL NO. 324
BY SENATOR MORRELL AND REPRESENTATIVES BAGNERIS, BOUIE, GARY
CARTER, CONNICK, COX, GLOVER, JIMMY HARRIS, HILFERTY,
HUNTER, JACKSON, JAMES, TERRY LANDRY, LEGER, LYONS,
MAGEE, MARCELLE, DUSTIN MILLER, MORENO, NORTON AND
SMITH
1 AN ACT
2 To amend and reenact Children's Code Arts. 305(A)(2), 306(D), and 804(1) and to enact
3 Chapter 13-B of Title 15 of the Louisiana Revised Statutes of 1950, to be comprised
4 of R.S. 15:1441 and 1442, and Children's Code Art. 306(G), relative to juvenile
5 jurisdiction; to provide for a child who commits a delinquent act before a certain age;
6 to provide for transfer of juveniles to adult detention centers pending trial; to create
7 the Juvenile Jurisdiction Planning and Implementation Committee; to provide for
8 membership, authority, duties, and responsibilities; to provide for directives to the
9 Louisiana State Law Institute, Louisiana Judicial Council, and Department of
10 Children and Family Services; to provide for an effective date; and to provide for
11 related matters.
12 Be it enacted by the Legislature of Louisiana:
13 Section 1. Chapter 13-B of Title 15 of the Louisiana Revised Statutes of 1950,
14 comprised of R.S. 15:1441 and 1442, is hereby enacted to read as follows:
15 CHAPTER 13-B. JUVENILE JURISDICTION
16 PLANNING AND IMPLEMENTATION ACT
17 §1441. Short title
18 This Chapter shall be known and may be cited as the "Juvenile
19 Jurisdiction Planning and Implementation Act".
20 §1442. Louisiana Juvenile Jurisdiction Planning Implementation Committee;
ACT No. 501
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1 composition; authority; responsibilities
2 A. The Louisiana Juvenile Jurisdiction Planning and Implementation
3 Committee, hereafter referred to as the "committee", is hereby created as a
4 committee of the Juvenile Justice Reform Act Implementation Commission
5 established pursuant to R.S. 46:2751 et seq.
6 B. The committee shall have the following authority, duties, and
7 responsibilities:
8 (1) Not later than January 1, 2017, the committee shall develop and
9 submit to the commissioner of administration, the president of the Senate, and
10 the speaker of the House of Representatives a plan for full implementation of
11 the provisions of this Chapter. The plan shall include recommendations for
12 changes required in the juvenile justice system to expand jurisdiction to include
13 persons seventeen years of age. These recommendations may include the
14 following items:
15 (a) The development of programs and policies that can safely reduce the
16 number of youth in the juvenile justice system, including expanded use of
17 diversion where appropriate; development and use of civil citation programs;
18 use of evidence-based and promising services wherever possible; and
19 reinvestment programs targeting the expanded use of community-based
20 alternatives to secure, nonsecure, and pre-disposition custody.
21 (b) The development of comprehensive projections to determine the
22 long-term distribution of placement capacity for youth in the juvenile justice
23 system.
24 (c) An analysis of the impact of the expansion of juvenile jurisdiction to
25 persons seventeen years of age on state agencies and a determination of which
26 state agencies shall be responsible for providing relevant services to juveniles,
27 including but not limited to mental health and substance abuse services,
28 housing, education, and employment.
29 (2) Not later than April 1, 2017, and quarterly thereafter, the committee
30 shall submit a written status report to the commissioner of administration, the
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1 president of the Senate, and the speaker of the House of Representatives on
2 implementation of the plan as provided in this Subsection.
3 (3) The committee shall have such powers, authority, and prerogatives
4 as provided for the Juvenile Justice Reform Act Implementation Commission
5 pursuant to R.S. 46:2754 et seq.
6 C. The committee shall be composed of the following members:
7 (1) Each member of the Juvenile Justice Reform Act Implementation
8 Commission shall be an ex officio member.
9 (2) Two sitting Louisiana judges: one appointed by the president of the
10 Louisiana District Judges Association and one appointed by the president of the
11 Louisiana Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges.
12 (3) The deputy secretary of the office of juvenile justice, or his designee.
13 (4) The superintendent of the state Department of Education, or his
14 designee.
15 (5) The executive director of the Louisiana Sheriffs' Association, or his
16 designee.
17 (6) The president of the Louisiana Juvenile Detention Association, or his
18 designee.
19 (7) An attorney appointed by the Louisiana Public Defender Board that
20 is an expert in juvenile defense.
21 (8) The executive director of the Children's Cabinet.
22 (9) The director of the Institute for Public Health and Justice, or his
23 designee.
24 (10) Two child or youth advocates, one appointed by the president pro
25 tempore of the Senate and one appointed by the speaker pro tempore of the
26 House of Representatives.
27 (11) Two parents of children who have been involved in the juvenile
28 justice system, one appointed by the executive director of the Cecil J. Picard
29 Center for Child Development and Lifelong Learning and one appointed by the
30 executive director of the Children's Coalition for Northeast Louisiana.
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1 (12) An expert in juvenile justice, appointed by the chair of the
2 Children's Code Committee of the Louisiana State Law Institute.
3 (13) Two youth representatives who have been prosecuted in criminal
4 court at the age of seventeen, one appointed by the executive director of
5 LouisianaChildren.org and one appointed by the executive director of the
6 Family and Youth Counseling Agency of Lake Charles, Louisiana.
7 (14) A representative of the Police Jury Association of Louisiana.
8 (15) An attorney appointed by the Louisiana District Attorneys
9 Association that is an expert in juvenile prosecution.
10 D.(1) All appointments to the committee shall be made not later than
11 September 1, 2016. Any vacancy on the committee shall be filled by the
12 respective appointing authority.
13 (2) The executive director of the Children's Cabinet shall serve as chair
14 of the committee and shall convene the committee no later than October 1, 2016.
15 (3) The members of the committee shall serve without compensation,
16 except the compensation to which they may be individually entitled to as a
17 member or employee of their respective organization or agency.
18 (4) A majority of the total committee membership shall constitute a
19 quorum and any official action by the committee shall require an affirmative
20 vote of a majority of the quorum present and voting.
21 (5) The committee shall conduct meetings as it deems necessary to fully
22 and effectively perform its duties and accomplish the objectives and purposes
23 of this Chapter and may receive testimony and information relative to any of
24 the subjects enumerated in this Chapter.
25 (6) The committee shall terminate on December 31, 2020.
26 Section 2. Children's Code Art. 305(A)(2), 306(D), and 804(1) are hereby amended
27 and reenacted and Children's Code Art. 306(G) is hereby enacted to read as follows:
28 Art. 305. Divestiture of juvenile court jurisdiction; original criminal court
29 jurisdiction over children; when acquired
30 A.(1) * * *
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1 (2) Thereafter, the child is subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the
2 appropriate court exercising criminal jurisdiction for all subsequent procedures,
3 including the review of bail applications, and the child shall be transferred forthwith
4 to the appropriate adult facility for detention prior to his trial as an adult court
5 exercising criminal jurisdiction may order that the child be transferred to the
6 appropriate adult facility for detention prior to his trial as an adult.
7 * * *
8 Art. 306. Places of detention; juveniles subject to criminal court jurisdiction
9 * * *
10 D. If at the conclusion of the continued custody hearing, the court determines
11 that the child meets the age requirements and that there is probable cause that the
12 child has committed one of the offenses enumerated in Article 305, the court shall
13 order him held for trial as an adult for the appropriate court of criminal jurisdiction.
14 The child shall appropriate court of criminal jurisdiction may thereafter order
15 that the child be held in any facility used for the pretrial detention of accused adults
16 and the child shall apply to the appropriate court of criminal jurisdiction for a
17 preliminary hearing, bail, and for any other rights to which he may be entitled under
18 the Code of Criminal Procedure.
19 * * *
20 G. Notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary, a child who is
21 subject to criminal jurisdiction pursuant to Article 305 shall not be detained
22 prior to trial in a juvenile detention facility after reaching the age of eighteen
23 if the governing authority with funding responsibility for the juvenile detention
24 facility objects to such detention.
25 * * *
26 Art. 804. Definitions
27 As used in this Title:
28 (1)(a)"Child" means any person under the age of twenty-one, including an
29 emancipated minor, who commits a delinquent act before attaining seventeen years
30 of age.
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1 (b) After June 30, 2018, "child" means any person under the age of
2 twenty-one, including an emancipated minor, who commits a delinquent act on
3 or after July 1, 2018, when the act is not a crime of violence as defined in R.S.
4 14:2, and occurs before the person attains eighteen years of age.
5 (c)(i) After June 30, 2020, "child" means any person under the age of
6 twenty-one, including an emancipated minor, who commits a delinquent act on
7 or after July 1, 2020, and before the person attains eighteen years of age.
8 (ii) Notwithstanding Item (i) of this Subparagraph, a child who has
9 attained the age of seventeen shall be subject to criminal jurisdiction pursuant
10 to Article 305 or 857.
11 * * *
12 Section 3.(A) The Louisiana State Law Institute is hereby directed to study, and to
13 recommend to the Legislature in a written report, such other amendments and additions to
14 the Louisiana Children's Code, Louisiana Code of Criminal Procedure, and the Louisiana
15 Revised Statutes as may be appropriate to effectuate the purpose of this Act to include
16 seventeen-year-olds in the juvenile justice system. The Louisiana State Law Institute shall
17 make its report, and shall recommend such legislation as it may deem appropriate, to the
18 Legislature by March 1, 2017.
19 (B) The Louisiana Judicial Council is hereby requested to study, and to recommend
20 to the Louisiana Supreme Court, such amendments and additions to Louisiana's Rules of
21 Court as may be appropriate to effectuate the purpose of this Act to include
22 seventeen-year-olds in the juvenile justice system.
23 (C) The Department of Children and Family Services is hereby directed to study, and
24 to recommend for promulgation into law through the Administrative Procedure Act, such
25 new or amended regulations for the safe operation of the state's juvenile detention centers
26 as may be appropriate given the inclusion of seventeen-year-olds in the juvenile justice
27 system.
28 Section 4.This Act shall become effective upon signature by the governor or, if not
29 signed by the governor, upon expiration of the time for bills to become law without signature
30 by the governor, as provided by Article III, Section 18 of the Constitution of Louisiana. If
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1 vetoed by the governor and subsequently approved by the legislature, this Act shall become
2 effective on the day following such approval.
3 Section 5. This Act shall be known as the "Raise the Age Louisiana Act of 2016".
PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE
SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
GOVERNOR OF THE STATE OF LOUISIANA
APPROVED:
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