New Resource on Juvenile Transfer Procedure

A new Juvenile Law Bulletin, Transfer of Juvenile Delinquency Cases to Superior Court, is now available. Transfer is the procedure used to move a case that begins as a delinquency matter under the original jurisdiction of the juvenile court to criminal court for trial as an adult. The Bulletin outlines when transfer is allowed, and sometimes required; the varying procedures to use to transfer a case based on age at offense and the offense charged; procedure to follow once transfer is ordered; the remand process; place of confinement; and issues related to the appeal process. This blog provides some highlights of the information in the Bulletin. Transfer Procedure Depends on Age at Offense and Offense Charged Whether transfer is allowed at all, discretionary, or mandatory varies based on age at offense and the offense charged. The table below provides a summary of the various rules that apply to cases that are subject to transfer. Cases in which the offense is alleged to have occurred when the juvenile was under the age of 13 or cases that include only misdemeanor charges are never subject to transfer. As described in a previous blog, once one offense is transferred, superior court obtains jurisdiction over the entire transaction. G.S. 7B-2203(c). Therefore, only one transfer mechanism needs to be used in each case, even if the offenses that are charged are subject to different transfer mechanisms. The Bulletin provides additional detail regarding the procedures that apply to the various transfer mechanisms—a finding of probable cause, a [...]