Juvenile Remediation to Attain Capacity to Proceed: New NC Law

A new law governing capacity to proceed in delinquency cases is set to take effect beginning with offenses committed on or after January 1, 2025. Part V. of Session Law 2023-114 creates a juvenile capacity standard and establishes procedures to be used when capacity to proceed is challenged. You can find a description of much of the new law in my blog from September. This post explains the juvenile remediation process that will be available under the new law for certain cases in which a juvenile is found to lack capacity to proceed. What is Remediation? Remediation is defined as “[s]ervices directed only at facilitating the attainment of capacity to proceed for a juvenile who the court finds is incapable to proceed. Such term may include mental health treatment to reduce interfering symptoms, specialized psychoeducational programming, or a combination of these interventions.” G.S. 7B-2401.1(6) (emphasis added). Remediation is analogous to restoration, a process found in criminal systems. However, juvenile systems are often in need of a uniquely juvenile process because the root cause of juvenile incapacity may differ from the root causes of incapacity in the criminal system. Ivan Kruh, Neil Gowensmith, Amanda Alkema, Kristin Swenson & Derrick Platt (2022): Community-Based Remediation of Juvenile Competence to Stand Trial: A National Survey, International Journal of Forensic Mental Health, DOI: 10.1080/14999013.2021.2007431. Unlike the criminal system, under the new law, developmental immaturity will be one of the things that can form the basis of juvenile incapacity to proceed. G.S. 7B-2401. Therefore, S.L. 2023-114 included [...]