Considerations When Processing Arrests of 16- and 17-year-olds Under Criminal Jurisdiction

When Session Law (S.L.) 2024-17 takes effect next Sunday, December 1, cases in which a Class A – E felony offense is alleged to have been committed at age 16 or 17 will originate under criminal jurisdiction. This means that the juveniles involved in these cases will be processed as defendants in criminal proceedings and not under the procedure for initiating a juvenile delinquency proceeding. At first blush, it may seem that this change will bring local procedure back to what it was before most offenses committed at ages 16 and 17 were brought under original juvenile jurisdiction (with the implementation of the Juvenile Justice Reinvestment Act in 2019). However, since 2019, both federal and state law changed in ways that shifted the landscape of arrest processing and confinement of minors. This blog explores these changes and their impact on implementation of S.L. 2024-17. Jail Removal and Sight and Sound Separation Requirements Under Federal Law The federal requirements related to the detention and secure housing of minors awaiting trial and who are treated as adults changed beginning on December 21, 2021. These requirements are contained in 34 U.S.C. § 11133(a)(11)(B) and 34 U.S.C. § 11133(a)(12)(A) in the law known as the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act (JJDPA). They are commonly referred to as the “jail removal” and “sight and sound separation” requirements of the JJDPA. These provisions now apply to juveniles who are awaiting trial or other legal process and being treated as adults for the purposes of criminal prosecution. [...]