HB 156 JUVENILE DETENTION FACILITY SEGREGATION

Rep William Rehm

Actions: [2] not prntd-HRC

Scheduled: Not Scheduled

 House Bill 156 (HB 156) provides that children under the age of 15 who are detained in juvenile detention facilities must be segregated from children 15 years of age or older.  

 House Bill 156 (HB 156) amends the Delinquency Act by requiring the separation of children under 15 from children over 15 in juvenile detention facilities.  These younger children must be physically segregated by sight and sound from the older children.  

This requirement applies to all children under age 15, regardless of offense they are alleged to have committed, so long as they are detained in a detention facility licensed by the Children, Youth and Families Department. 
 

 Current law does not segregate children in juvenile detention centers. The law requires all children under age 18 to be detained in a juvenile detention facility except for under the following circumstances: (1) a youthful offender who is violent towards staff or residents may be transferred to a county jail; (2) a child who has previously been incarcerated as an adult cannot be detained in a juvenile detention center; and (3) a child alleged to be a serious youthful offender may be held in a county jail. 

The law also prohibits transferring a child to an adult jail solely on the basis of turning 18 in the juvenile detention center.