One of the unique aspects of juvenile delinquency procedure is the intake and evaluation process. This mandatory process precedes commencement of a delinquency court action and determines if an initial allegation ever makes its way to court. It is implemented by the court counselor and includes an opportunity for prosecutor review of any decision not to move the allegation to court for judicial processing.

This process exists to:

• determine from available evidence whether there are reasonable grounds to believe the facts alleged are true;
• determine whether the facts alleged constitute a delinquent or undisciplined offense within the jurisdiction of the court;
• determine whether the facts alleged are sufficiently serious to warrant court action; and
• obtain assistance from community resources when court referral is not necessary or allowed. G.S. 7B-1700.

Step 1. A Complaint is Received

Because delinquency matters are civil proceedings (See In re Burrus, 275 N.C. 517 (1969)), matters are initiated when a complaint, not a criminal charging document, is received. Instead of filing the complaint with the court, the complaint must be provided to the office of the juvenile court counselor. Juvenile court counselors are employees of the North Carolina Division of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (DJJDP) within the Department of Public Safety. Thus, the intake and evaluation function is completed by an Executive branch agency and not the court system.

Role of the Court Counselor

The court counselor is tasked with implementing the intake and evaluation function described below. That function does not include investigation of the allegations. The Juvenile Code clearly states that the court counselor is not to conduct field investigation to substantiate complaints or produce supplementary evidence. The court counselor may refer complainants to law enforcement for this kind of investigation. G.S. 7B-1700.

What Constitutes a Complaint

The Juvenile Code does not define what a complaint is or what must be in a complaint. Instead, those details are in the North Carolina Administrative Code (NCAC). According to 14B NCAC 11D.0101, a complaint is a written allegation that a juvenile is delinquent with a signature verifying that the allegation is true. A complaint must be in writing and contain the:

• juvenile’s name, age, and date of birth;
• name of the juvenile’s parents, guardians, or custodians;
• juvenile’s home address;
• facts supporting any delinquency allegation;
• date the complaint is received by the court counselor;
• complainant’s name, address, and telephone number; and
• complainant’s signature, verified before an official authorized to administer oaths. 14B NCAC 11D.0102.

What if any of these details that do not relate to the facts supporting the allegation are not included in the complaint? For example, no home address is provided due to the youth’s unhoused status or the parent’s name is not included because it is unknown. There is no case law that addresses this situation, likely because the complaint becomes the petition if it is filed in court. The complaint itself is not the pleading that initiates the actual court proceeding and is therefore never subject to appellate review as part of the delinquency matter filed in court.

It is unlikely that a defect in a complaint that is related to the requirements in the NCAC and does not impact the substance of the allegations is fatal to the complaint when considered through both criminal and civil law lenses. Pursuant to criminal law, statutory defects in indictments are not jurisdictional (State v. Singleton, 386 N.C. 183, 210 (2024)). Pursuant to the law governing civil proceedings, even the substantive allegations in civil complaints are to be liberally construed (Corprew v. Geigy Chemical Corp.271 N.C. 485, 490 (1967)). It also seems likely that complaints might be subject to lesser technical standards than the formal pleading in a criminal or civil matter since they are not the formal pleadings that initiate a court proceeding. Given these factors, it appears that technical defects in complaints should not prevent the court counselor from engaging in the intake and evaluation function required once a complaint is received.

Step 2. DJJDP Preliminary Inquiry

Once a complaint is received, the court counselor must assess whether the allegations are:

1. subject to juvenile jurisdiction;
2. legally sufficient; or
3. frivolous.  G.S. 7B-1701(a).

The prosecutor must assist the court counselor in making the determination of legal sufficiency as it relates to the quantum of proof and elements of offenses when the court counselor asks for that assistance. Id. In practice, some localities routinely provide prosecutor input on legal sufficiency to assist non-lawyer court counselors in conducting this legal assessment.

If the court counselor determines that the allegations are not subject to juvenile jurisdiction, are not legally sufficient, or are frivolous, the court counselor must immediately refuse authorization to file the complaint as a petition. Id. The process then skips steps 3 and 4 below and moves to step 5 (notification to the complainant and victim).

Step 3. Divertible or Nondivertible?

When a complaint moves past the preliminary inquiry stage, the court counselor must determine whether the complaint contains reasonable grounds to believe that the juvenile committed a nondivertible offense. Nondivertible offenses must be filed in court as a petition and include:

• murder;
• first or second degree rape;
• first or second degree sexual offense;
• arson;
• any felony offense contained in Article 5 of Chapter 90 of the General Statues (controlled substance offenses),
• first degree burglary;
• crime against nature; and
• any felony involving the willful infliction of serious bodily injury on another or which was committed by use of a deadly weapon. Id.

Complaints that include reasonable grounds to believe that the juvenile committed one of these offenses must be subjected to the jurisdiction of the court through the filing of a petition. The court counselor has no discretion to close or divert this category of cases.

Step 4. Evaluation to Determine If and How to Proceed

When a complaint proceeds past the preliminary inquiry process and does not include reasonable grounds to believe that the juvenile committed a nondivertible offense, the court counselor must decide whether to 1) close, 2) divert, or 3) authorize the complaint for filing as a petition to initiate a court proceeding. G.S. 7B-1702. If practicable, this process must include interviews with the complainant; victim; juvenile; juvenile’s parent, guardian, or custodian; and people known to have relevant information about the juvenile or their family. Id. The court counselor is required to consider criteria established by DJJDP and conduct a gang assessment for every juvenile who is aged 12 or older in making this decision. Id.

The criteria established by DJJDP include consideration of the following factors in the best interest of the juvenile:

• protection of the community;
• the seriousness of the offense;
• the juvenile’s previous record of involvement in the legal system including previous diversions;
• the ability of the juvenile and their family to use community resources;
• consideration of the victim;
• the juvenile’s age; and
• the juvenile’s culpability in the alleged complaint. 14B NCAC 11D.0102(b).

Timeline for Evaluation Decision

The court counselor has 15 days from the receipt of the complaint to complete the evaluation process.  An additional 15 days are allowed at the discretion of the chief court counselor. G.S. 7B-1703(a). The same timeline applies to the length of time the court counselor has to file the petition. G.S. 7B-1703(b). Failure to abide by this timeline does not negate the court’s jurisdiction. In re D.S., 364 N.C. 184, 194 (2010).

Diversion

The court counselor is required to develop a diversion plan on a determination that intervention related to the allegations is needed and may be accomplished without court involvement. 14B NCAC 11D.0102(c)(1). Diversion can occur with or without a formal diversion contract. G.S. 7B-1706(a), 14B NCAC 11D.0102(c)(2).

Diversion plans can include referral of the juvenile to any of the following:

• an appropriate public or private resource;
• restitution;
• community service;
• victim‑offender mediation;
• regimented physical training;
• counseling; or
• a teen court program. G.S. 7B-1706(a).

If at any time during diversion the juvenile or their parent, guardian, or custodian does not comply with the terms of the diversion, the court counselor must reconsider the decision to divert the matter and has the discretion to authorize filing of the complaint in court as a petition. G.S. 7B-1706(e). This includes a mandatory check on compliance within the first 60 days of any diversion. Id. Diversion can last for a maximum of six months. If no petition is filed within that time, the case must be closed. Id.

Step 5. Complainant and Victim Notification of Evaluation Decision

If the court counselor determines that the complaint should not be filed as a petition, whether during the preliminary inquiry or as a result of the evaluation decision, the court counselor must immediately notify the complainant and the victim in writing of that decision. G.S. 7B-1703(c). The notification must include:

• the specific reasons for the decision;
• whether legal sufficiency was found;
• if the matter was closed or diverted and retained; and
• notice of the right of the complainant and the victim to have the decision not to file the complaint as a petition reviewed by the prosecutor. Id.

Step 6. Optional Prosecutor Review

Once the complainant and the victim receive the notification of the decision not to authorize the filing of a petition, they have 10 business days to request prosecutor review of that decision. G.S. 7B-1704. The ten-day timeline can be waived by the district attorney. Id. The court counselor must immediately notify the prosecutor when the complainant or the victim requests a review. Id. The prosecutor must then notify the complainant, victim, and court counselor of the time and place for the review, which must be within the next 20 days. G.S. 7B-1704, -1705.

The prosecutor review must include conferences with the complainant, victim, and court counselor. G.S. 7B-1705. At the conclusion of the review the prosecutor can choose to affirm the decision of the court counselor not to file the complaint as a petition or to direct that the complaint be filed as a petition. Id. The prosecutor is also required to inform the complainant and the victim of their decision. Id.

Impact of Intake and Evaluation Process

This intake and evaluation process has a significant impact on the pathway that many complaints follow. According to the DJJDP 2025 Annual Report, 58.5% of complaints received by court counselors statewide were approved for filing as a petition and became court cases. Almost a quarter (24%) of complaints were closed without any further action. The remaining 17.5% of complaints were diverted from court involvement. County-specific data regarding total complaints received and the number of juveniles diverted from court can be found at the Five-Year Historical Trend Dashboard maintained by DJJDP.

As always, I welcome your feedback on this or other juvenile delinquency law matters. I can be reached at greene@sog.unc.edu.