Georgia House of Representatives - 1995/1996 Sessions

HB 502 - Juvenile courts; delinquency proceedings; records; hearings

Page Numbers - 1/ 2/ 3

Code Sections - 15-11-58

1. Klein  39th            2. Campbell  42nd          3. Davis  60th
4. Ashe  46th             5. Trense  44th            6. Burkhalter  41st


House Comm: Judy       /                Senate Comm:            /                                   
House Vote: Yeas       Nays             Senate Vote: Yeas     Nays                                  
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               House          Action         Senate                                                 
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              1/31/95  Read 1st Time                                                                
              2/1/95   Read 2nd Time                                                                
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Code Sections amended:                                                                              


HB 502                                             LC 9 8105






                        A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
                               AN ACT


  1- 1  To amend Chapter 11 of Title 15 of the Official Code of
  1- 2  Georgia Annotated, relating to juvenile proceedings, so as
  1- 3  to change the way juvenile courts conduct their hearings in
  1- 4  delinquency proceedings and allow public access to certain
  1- 5  juvenile court files and records which heretofore have been
  1- 6  inaccessible; to repeal conflicting laws; and for other
  1- 7  purposes.

  1- 8       BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF GEORGIA:

                         SECTION 1.

  1- 9  Chapter 11 of Title 15 of the Official Code of Georgia
  1-10  Annotated, relating to juvenile proceedings, is amended by
  1-11  striking subsection (c) of Code Section 15-11-28, relating
  1-12  to the conduct of hearings generally, and inserting in its
  1-13  place the following:

  1-14    "(c) The general public shall be excluded from hearings
  1-15    involving delinquency, deprivation, or unruliness.  Only
  1-16    the parties, their counsel, witnesses, persons
  1-17    accompanying a party for his assistance, and any other
  1-18    persons as the court finds have a proper interest in the
  1-19    proceeding or in the work of the court may be admitted by
  1-20    the court. The general public shall be allowed to attend
  1-21    hearings involving unruliness or delinquency unless the
  1-22    charges involve child abuse or sexual abuse of another
  1-23    child or the court, in its discretion, finds that the
  1-24    public interest and welfare of the child would be best
  1-25    served by closing the hearing to the public.  The general
  1-26    public shall also be excluded from hearings involving
  1-27    deprivation of a child.  In those hearings in which the
  1-28    general public is excluded, the parties, their counsel,
  1-29    witnesses, persons accompanying a party for his or her
  1-30    assistance, and any other persons as the court finds to
  1-31    have a proper interest in the proceedings or the work of
  1-32    the court may be admitted by the court.  The court may
  1-33    temporarily exclude the child from the hearing except



                                 -1- (Index)

                                                   LC 9 8105

  2- 1    while allegations of his or her delinquency or unruly
  2- 2    conduct are being heard."

                         SECTION 2.

  2- 3  Said chapter is further amended by striking Code Section
  2- 4  15-11-58, relating to inspection of court files and records,
  2- 5  and inserting in its place the following:

  2- 6    "15-11-58. (Index)

  2- 7    Except in cases arising under Code Section 15-11-49 and
  2- 8    cases in which the general public may not be excluded from
  2- 9    the hearings under subsection (c) of Code Section
  2-10    15-11-28, and subject to the requirements of subsection
  2-11    (d) of Code Section 15-11-33 and Code Section 15-11-61,
  2-12    all files and records of the court in a proceeding under
  2-13    this article are open to inspection only upon order of the
  2-14    court.  The judge may permit authorized representatives of
  2-15    recognized organizations compiling statistics for proper
  2-16    purposes to inspect and make abstracts from official
  2-17    records under whatever conditions upon their use and
  2-18    distribution the judge may deem proper and may punish by
  2-19    contempt any violation of those conditions.  The judge may
  2-20    permit any school principal or any school guidance
  2-21    counselor, school social worker, or school psychologist
  2-22    who is certified under Chapter 2 of Title 20 and who is
  2-23    counseling a student as a part of such counseling person's
  2-24    school employment duties, to review official records of
  2-25    the court in any proceeding under this chapter concerning
  2-26    that student, including but not limited to records of that
  2-27    child's controlled substance or marijuana abuse, which
  2-28    records are protected by Code Section 49-5-41.1, under
  2-29    whatever conditions that the judge may deem proper and may
  2-30    punish by contempt any violation of those conditions.  The
  2-31    judge shall permit authorized representatives of the
  2-32    Department of Children and Youth Services, the Department
  2-33    of Corrections, the Children and Youth Coordinating
  2-34    Council, and the Council of Juvenile Court Judges to
  2-35    inspect and extract data from any court files and records
  2-36    for the purpose of obtaining statistics on juveniles and
  2-37    to make copies pursuant to the order of the court."

                         SECTION 3.

  2-38  Said chapter is further amended by striking subsection (b)
  2-39  of Code Section 15-11-59, relating to juvenile law
  2-40  enforcement records, and inserting in its place the
  2-41  following:


                                 -2- (Index)

                                                   LC 9 8105

  3- 1    "(b) Unless a charge of delinquency is transferred for
  3- 2    criminal prosecution under Code Section 15-11-39, or the
  3- 3    interest of national security requires, or the case is one
  3- 4    in which the general public may not be excluded from the
  3- 5    hearings under subsection (c) of Code Section 15-11-28, or
  3- 6    the court otherwise orders in the interest of the child,
  3- 7    the records and files shall not be open to public
  3- 8    inspection nor shall their contents be disclosed to the
  3- 9    public."

                         SECTION 4.

  3-10  Said chapter is further amended by adding at the end of Code
  3-11  Section 15-11-61, relating to sealed records, a new
  3-12  subsection (d) to read as follows:

  3-13    "(d) No order sealing files and records under this Code
  3-14    section may be issued regarding any proceeding in which
  3-15    the general public may not be excluded from the hearing
  3-16    under subsection (c) of Code Section 15-11-28."

                         SECTION 5.

  3-17  All laws and parts of laws in conflict with this Act are
  3-18  repealed.


























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