Safe and dangerous detention refers to the temporary placement of a minor outside his or her home, either in a juvenile detention centre (police custody) or in a hospital placement such as the home of a parent or foster family (dangerous custody). The court usually orders the safe detention of juveniles who commit serious crimes and prove that they pose a danger to other persons or property, although this is permissible in other circumstances. The court may order uncertain custody if a minor qualifies for safe custody, but determines that dangerous custody is in the best interests of the juvenile or if a minor is a special case and accepts uncertain custody. You can read more about the legal criteria for safe and unsafe custody in G.S. 7B-1903. A judge of a North Carolina court hearing an application for the return of a runaway under the provisions of G.S. 7B-2804 of the Interstate Covenant on Juveniles will hold a hearing on whether the applicant is entitled to custody of the minor for purposes of the Covenant, whether or not it appears that the minor has actually absconded without consent. whether the young person is an emancipated minor or not, and whether or not it is in the best interests of the young person to force the young person`s return to the State. A judge of a North Carolina court who finds that an application for the return of a minor is admissible under the provisions of article 7B-2804 of the Covenant shall, on request, fix a reasonable period of time for the review of the legality of the proceedings. The duration of the detention of a minor under the provisions of article 7B-2804 of the Covenant for the Protection and Welfare of Minors, subject to the order of a court of that State authorizing the return of the minor to another State party to the Covenant on the basis of a request for return from a court of that State, may not exceed 30 days. In applying the provisions of article 7B-2804 of the Covenant to secure the return of a runaway from North Carolina, the courts of that State shall interpret the word “minor” used in this article to refer to any person who has not yet attained the age of eighteen years.
(1965, c. 925, p. 2; 1971, c. 1231, p. 2; 1977, c. 552; 1979, c. 815, p. 1; 1998-202, p. 6.) However, out-of-state outliers can be kept safe for up to 90 days until they return to their home state. Normally, the temporary detention of runaways and offenders with other status cannot exceed 12 hours on weekdays or 24 hours on weekends and holidays. G.S. 7B-1901.
These deadlines are intended to comply with federal law prohibiting the detention of non-delinquent juveniles in safe facilities. (See 42 U.S.C. § 5633(a); the Juvenile Justice and Crime Prevention Act or “JJDPA”) This summary is just a snapshot of what happens when runaways from other states are found in North Carolina or when NC youth run to other states. The provisions of the revised ICJ are lengthy and go far beyond the procedures mentioned in this blog post. Law enforcement agencies who encounter outliers outside the state should immediately contact ICJ North Carolina Commissioner Traci Marchand, whose office is located in the Department of Adult Correctional and Juvenile Justice`s main office in Raleigh. A list of ICJ officials by state is available on the Commission`s website, along with other useful tools for lawyers and judicial officials trying to navigate ICJ proceedings, including a “user-friendly toolkit for judges”. When a teen walks from North Carolina to another state or from another state to North Carolina, intergovernmental procedures are in place to facilitate the youth`s safe return to their home state. Recently, law enforcement officials in several North Carolina counties encountered out-of-state outliers, and yesterday this topic appeared on one of the mailing lists overseen by the School of Government. It therefore seems that the time is right to consider what the Inter-State Covenant on Minors says about the legal process of returning these children to their homes. North Carolina law defines a “youth” as anyone under the age of 18 who is not married, emancipated or in the military.
However, the juvenile court has jurisdiction only for juveniles who are delinquent or undisciplined. A “young offender” is defined as a child who is at least 6 years of age but under 18 years of age and who commits an offence that would be a crime if committed by an adult, with the exception of youth aged 16 and 17 who commit motor vehicle offences. An “unruly minor” is defined as a child who is at least 6 years of age but under 18 years of age who is not subject to disciplinary control by his or her parents or guardian, who is regularly in places where it is illegal for children to do so, or who has run away from home for more than 24 hours. A child under the age of 16 may also be considered an “unruly minor” if he or she is absent from school illegally. As a result, most cases involving allegations against children between the ages of 6 and 17 fall within the original jurisdiction of the Juvenile Court. With the exception of state constitutions and other intergovernmental covenants, the revised ICJ replaces all state laws that conflict with its provisions. It should not be confused with the Interstate Compact on the Placement of Children (ICPC), which generally applies to out-of-state foster homes.