Archive

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

  This entry was contributed by Jacquelyn Greene on November 26, 2024 at 9:59 am and is filed under Juvenile Justice, Juvenile Law.

  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. Continue Reading

• Statutory Changes Related to Juvenile Interrogation and Secure Custody Orders

  This entry was contributed by Jacquelyn Greene on October 24, 2023 at 2:20 pm and is filed under Juvenile Justice.

  This post covers recent statutory changes related to the custodial interrogation of youth who are 16 and 17 years of age and to the issuance and execution of secure custody orders in delinquency cases. All of these changes are contained in Session law 2023-114 and will apply to offenses committed on or after December 1, 2023. Continue Reading

• New Juvenile Law Bulletin on Juvenile Interrogation

  This entry was contributed by Jacquelyn Greene on September 29, 2022 at 9:57 am and is filed under Juvenile Justice.

  What circumstances constitute custodial interrogation in a school setting? Who counts as a guardian or custodian for the purpose of a custodial interrogation of a juvenile? Under what circumstances can a juvenile waive their rights that attach during a custodial interrogation? A new Juvenile Law Bulletin on Juvenile Interrogation is now available as a School of Government publication. The Bulletin details the applicable law that addresses these questions and other issues related to the custodial interrogation of juveniles. You can access it by clicking on the link above.

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• A Juvenile’s Request for a Parent During Custodial Interrogation Must Be Unambiguous

  This entry was contributed by LaToya Powell on March 8, 2017 at 8:11 pm and is filed under Juvenile Justice.

  In December, the North Carolina Supreme Court filed its long-awaited opinion in State v. Saldierna, __ N.C. __, 794 S.E.2d  474 (December 21, 2016), a juvenile interrogation case heard by the court on February 16, 2016. This decision marks the first time the court has addressed the rights of a juvenile during a custodial interrogation since J.D.B. v. North Carolina, 564 U.S. 261 (2011), the landmark U.S. Supreme Court case which made age a relevant factor in the Miranda custody test (and reversed the state supreme court on this issue). Saldierna did not directly involve whether the juvenile was in police custody, since he was clearly under arrest. The issue, instead, was whether a juvenile must make a clear and unambiguous request in order to exercise the juvenile’s statutory right to have a parent present during a custodial interrogation. The Supreme Court said yes, reversing the Court of Appeals on this question. This post discusses whether the ruling can be reconciled with J.D.B. and Juvenile Code statutes governing custodial interrogations. Continue Reading