SECTIONS 601-608 - California Statutes

WELFARE AND INSTITUTIONS CODE

SECTION 601-608

601. (a) Any person under the age of 18 years who persistently or
habitually refuses to obey the reasonable and proper orders or
directions of his or her parents, guardian, or custodian, or who is
beyond the control of that person, or who is under the age of 18
years when he or she violated any ordinance of any city or county of
this state establishing a curfew based solely on age is within the
jurisdiction of the juvenile court which may adjudge the minor to be
a ward of the court.
(b) If a minor has four or more truancies within one school year
as defined in Section 48260 of the Education Code or a school
attendance review board or probation officer determines that the
available public and private services are insufficient or
inappropriate to correct the habitual truancy of the minor, or to
correct the minor's persistent or habitual refusal to obey the
reasonable and proper orders or directions of school authorities, or
if the minor fails to respond to directives of a school attendance
review board or probation officer or to services provided, the minor
is then within the jurisdiction of the juvenile court which may
adjudge the minor to be a ward of the court. However, it is the
intent of the Legislature that no minor who is adjudged a ward of the
court pursuant solely to this subdivision shall be removed from the
custody of the parent or guardian except during school hours.
(c) To the extent practically feasible, a minor who is adjudged a
ward of the court pursuant to this section shall not be permitted to
come into or remain in contact with any minor ordered to participate
in a truancy program, or the equivalent thereof, pursuant to Section
602.
(d) Any peace officer or school administrator may issue a notice
to appear to a minor who is within the jurisdiction of the juvenile
court pursuant to this section.

601.2. In the event that a parent or guardian or person in charge
of a minor described in Section 48264.5 of the Education Code fails
to respond to directives of the school attendance review board or to
services offered on behalf of the minor, the school attendance review
board shall direct that the minor be referred to the probation
department or to the county welfare department under Section 300, and
the school attendance review board may require the school district
to file a complaint against the parent, guardian, or other person in
charge of such minor as provided in Section 48291 or Section 48454 of
the Education Code.

601.3. (a) If the district attorney or the probation officer
receives notice from the school district pursuant to subdivision (b)
of Section 48260.6 of the Education Code that a minor continues to be
classified as a truant after the parents or guardians have been
notified pursuant to subdivision (a) of Section 48260.5 of the
Education Code, or if the district attorney or the probation officer
receives notice from the school attendance review board, or the
district attorney receives notice from the probation officer,
pursuant to subdivision (a) of Section 48263.5 of the Education Code
that a minor continues to be classified as a truant after review and
counseling by the school attendance review board or probation
officer, the district attorney or the probation officer, or both, may
request the parents or guardians and the child to attend a meeting
in the district attorney's office or at the probation department to
discuss the possible legal consequences of the minor's truancy.
(b) Notice of a meeting to be held pursuant to this section shall
contain all of the following:
(1) The name and address of the person to whom the notice is
directed.
(2) The date, time, and place of the meeting.
(3) The name of the minor classified as a truant.
(4) The section pursuant to which the meeting is requested.
(5) Notice that the district attorney may file a criminal
complaint against the parents or guardians pursuant to Section 48293
of the Education Code for failure to compel the attendance of the
minor at school.
(c) Notice of a meeting to be held pursuant to this section shall
be served at least five days prior to the meeting on each person
required to attend the meeting. Service shall be made personally or
by certified mail with return receipt requested.
(d) At the commencement of the meeting authorized by this section,
the district attorney or the probation officer shall advise the
parents or guardians and the child that any statements they make
could be used against them in subsequent court proceedings.
(e) Upon completion of the meeting authorized by this section, the
probation officer or the district attorney, after consultation with
the probation officer, may file a petition pursuant to Section 601 if
the district attorney or the probation officer determines that
available community resources cannot resolve the truancy problem, or
if the pupil or the parents or guardians of the pupil, or both, have
failed to respond to services provided or to the directives of the
school, the school attendance review board, the probation officer, or
the district attorney.
(f) The truancy mediation program authorized by this section may
be established by the district attorney or by the probation officer.
The district attorney and the probation officer shall coordinate
their efforts and shall cooperate in determining which office is best
able to operate a truancy mediation program in their county pursuant
to this section.

601.4. (a) The juvenile court judge may be assigned to sit as a
superior court judge to hear any complaint alleging that a parent,
guardian, or other person having control or charge of a minor has
violated Section 48293 of the Education Code. The jurisdiction of the
juvenile court granted by this section shall not be exclusive and
the charge may be prosecuted instead in a superior court. However,
upon motion, that action shall be transferred to the juvenile court.
(b) Notwithstanding Section 737 of the Penal Code, a violation of
Section 48293 of the Education Code may be prosecuted pursuant to
subdivision (a), by written complaint filed in the same manner as an
infraction may be prosecuted. The juvenile court judge, sitting as a
superior court judge, may coordinate the action involving the minor
with any action involving the parent, guardian, or other person
having control or charge of the minor. Both matters may be heard and
decided at the same time unless the parent, guardian, other person
having control or charge of the minor, or any member of the press or
public objects to a closed hearing of the proceedings charging
violation of Section 48293 of the Education Code.

601.5. (a) Any county may, upon adoption of a resolution by the
board of supervisors, establish an At-Risk Youth Early Intervention
Program designed to assess and serve families with children who have
chronic behavioral problems that place the child at risk of becoming
a ward of the juvenile court under Section 601 or 602. The purpose of
the program is to provide a swift and local service response to
youth behavior problems so that future involvement with the justice
system may be avoided.
(b) The At-Risk Youth Early Intervention Program shall be designed
and developed by a collaborative group which shall include
representatives of the juvenile court, the probation department, the
district attorney, the public defender, the county department of
social services, the county education department, county health and
mental health agencies, and local and community-based youth and
family service providers.
(c) The At-Risk Youth Early Intervention Program shall include one
or more neighborhood-based Youth Referral Centers for at-risk youth
and their families. These Youth Referral Centers shall be flexibly
designed by each participating county to serve the local at-risk
youth population with family assessments, onsite services, and
referrals to offsite services. The operator of a Youth Referral
Center may be a private nonprofit community-based agency or a public
agency, or both. A center shall be staffed by youth and family
service counselors who may be public or private employees and who
shall be experienced in dealing with at-risk youth who are eligible
for the program, as described in subdivision (d). The center may also
be staffed as a collaborative service model involving onsite youth
and family counselors, probation officers, school representatives,
health and mental health practitioners, or other service providers. A
center shall be located at one or more community sites that are
generally accessible to at-risk youth and families and shall be open
during daytime, evening, and weekend hours, as appropriate, based
upon local service demand and resources available to the program.
(d) A minor may be referred to a Youth Referral Center by a parent
or guardian, a law enforcement officer, a probation officer, a child
welfare agency, or a school, or a minor may self-refer. A minor may
be referred to the program if the minor is at least 10 years of age
and is believed by the referring source to be at risk of justice
system involvement due to chronic disobedience to parents, curfew
violations, repeat truancy, incidents of running away from home,
experimentation with drugs or alcohol, or other serious behavior
problems. Whenever a minor is referred to the program, the Youth
Referral Center shall make an initial determination as to whether the
minor is engaged in a pattern of at-risk behavior likely to result
in future justice system involvement, and, if satisfied that the
minor is significantly at risk, the center shall initiate a family
assessment. The family assessment shall identify the minor's
behavioral problem, the family's circumstances and relationship to
the problem, and the needs of the minor or the family in relation to
the behavioral problem. The assessment shall be performed using a
risk and needs assessment instrument, based on national models of
successful youth risk and needs assessment instruments and utilizing
objective assessment criteria, as appropriate for the clientele
served by the program. At a minimum, the assessment shall include
information drawn from interviews with the minor and with the parents
or other adults having custody of the minor, and it shall include
information on the minor's probation, school, health, and mental
health status to the extent such information may be available and
accessible.
(e) If the Youth Referral Center confirms upon assessment that the
minor is at significant risk of future justice system involvement
and that the minor may benefit from referral to services, the Youth
Referral Center staff shall work with the minor and the parents to
produce a written service plan to be implemented over a period of up
to six months. The plan shall identify specific programs or services
that are recommended by the center and are locally available to the
minor and the family as a means of addressing the behavior problems
that led to the referral. The plan may include a requirement that the
minor obey reasonable rules of conduct at home or in school
including reasonable home curfew and school attendance rules, while
the service plan is being implemented. The plan may also require, as
a condition of further participation in the program, that a parent or
other family member engage in counseling, parenting classes, or
other relevant activities. To the extent possible given available
resources, the staff at the Youth Referral Center shall facilitate
compliance with the service plan by assisting the minor and the
family in making appointments with service providers, by responding
to requests for help by the minor or the parent as they seek to
comply with the plan, and by monitoring compliance until the plan is
completed.
(f) (1) The caseworker at the Youth Referral Center shall explain
the service plan to the minor and the parents and, prior to any
referral to services, the minor and the parents shall agree to the
plan. The minor and the parents shall be informed that the minor's
failure to accept or to cooperate with the service plan may result in
the filing of a petition and a finding of wardship under Section
601.
(2) With the cooperation of the collaborative group described in
subdivision (b), the Youth Referral Center shall review youth and
family services offered within its local service area and shall
identify providers, programs, and services that are available for
referral of minors and parents under this section. Providers to which
minors and parents may be referred under this section may be public
or private agencies or individuals offering counseling, health,
educational, parenting, mentoring, community service, skill-building,
and other relevant services that are considered likely to resolve
the behavioral problems that are referred to the center.
(g) (1) Unless the probation department is directly operating and
staffing the Youth Referral Center, the probation department shall
designate one or more probation officers to serve as liaison to a
Youth Referral Center for the purpose of facilitating and monitoring
compliance with service plans established in individual cases by the
center.
(2) If, upon consultation with the minor's parents and with
providers designated in the service plan, the supervising caseworker
at the center and the liaison probation officer agree that the minor
has willfully, significantly, and repeatedly failed to cooperate with
the service plan, the minor shall be referred to the probation
department which shall verify the failure and, upon verification,
shall file a petition seeking to declare the minor a ward of the
juvenile court under subdivision (a) of Section 601. No minor shall
be referred to the probation department for the filing of a petition
under this subdivision until at least 90 days have elapsed after the
first attempt to implement the service plan. No minor shall be
subject to filing of a petition under this subdivision for a failure
to complete the service plan which is due principally to an inability
of the minor or the family to pay for services listed in the service
plan.
(3) If, within 180 days of the start of the service plan, the
minor and the family have substantially completed the service plan
and the minor's behavior problem appears to have been resolved, the
center shall notify the probation department that the plan has been
successfully completed.
(h) If a petition to declare the minor a ward of the juvenile
court under subdivision (a) of Section 601 has been filed by the
probation officer under this section, the court shall review the
petition and any other facts which the court deems appropriate in
relation to the minor's alleged failure to comply with the service
plan described in subdivision (e). Based upon this review, the court
may continue any hearing on the petition for up to six months so that
the minor and the minor's parents may renew their efforts to comply
with the service plan under court supervision. During the period in
which the hearing is continued, the court may order that the minor
and the parent cooperate with the service plan designed by the Youth
Referral Center, or the court may modify the service plan or may
impose additional conditions upon the minor or the parents as may be
appropriate to encourage resolution of the behavior problems that led
to the filing of the petition. The court shall, during the period of
continuance, periodically review compliance with the extended
service plan through reports from the probation officer or by calling
the parties back into court, based upon a review schedule deemed
appropriate by the court.
(i) The juvenile court of any county participating in the At-Risk
Youth Early Intervention Program shall designate a judicial officer
to serve as a liaison to the program in order to participate in the
development of the program and to coordinate program operations with
the juvenile court. The liaison judicial officer may be designated by
the juvenile court as the principal judicial officer assigned to
review and hear petitions filed under this section, or if the court
does not elect to designate a principal judicial officer to hear
these cases, the juvenile court shall take steps to train or
familiarize other judicial officers reviewing or hearing these cases
as to the operations, procedures, and services of the At-Risk Youth
Early Intervention Program.

602. (a) Except as provided in subdivision (b), any person who is
under the age of 18 years when he or she violates any law of this
state or of the United States or any ordinance of any city or county
of this state defining crime other than an ordinance establishing a
curfew based solely on age, is within the jurisdiction of the
juvenile court, which may adjudge such person to be a ward of the
court.
(b) Any person who is alleged, when he or she was 14 years of age
or older, to have committed one of the following offenses shall be
prosecuted under the general law in a court of criminal jurisdiction:
(1) Murder, as described in Section 187 of the Penal Code, if one
of the circumstances enumerated in subdivision (a) of Section 190.2
of the Penal Code is alleged by the prosecutor, and the prosecutor
alleges that the minor personally killed the victim.
(2) The following sex offenses, if the prosecutor alleges that the
minor personally committed the offense, and if the prosecutor
alleges one of the circumstances enumerated in the One Strike law,
subdivision (d) or (e) of Section 667.61 of the Penal Code, applies:
(A) Rape, as described in paragraph (2) of subdivision (a) of
Section 261 of the Penal Code.
(B) Spousal rape, as described in paragraph (1) of subdivision (a)
of Section 262 of the Penal Code.
(C) Forcible sex offenses in concert with another, as described in
Section 264.1 of the Penal Code.
(D) Forcible lewd and lascivious acts on a child under the age of
14 years, as described in subdivision (b) of Section 288 of the Penal
Code.
(E) Forcible sexual penetration, as described in subdivision (a)
of Section 289 of the Penal Code.
(F) Sodomy or oral copulation in violation of Section 286 or 288a
of the Penal Code, by force, violence, duress, menace, or fear of
immediate and unlawful bodily injury on the victim or another person.
(G) Lewd and lascivious acts on a child under the age of 14 years,
as defined in subdivision (a) of Section 288, unless the defendant
qualifies for probation under subdivision (c) of Section 1203.066 of
the Penal Code.

602.3. (a) Notwithstanding any other law and pursuant to the
provisions of this section, the juvenile court shall commit any minor
adjudicated to be a ward of the court for the personal use of a
firearm in the commission of a violent felony, as defined in
subdivision (c) of Section 667.5 of the Penal Code, to placement in a
juvenile hall, ranch, camp, or with the Department of the Youth
Authority.
(b) A court may impose a treatment-based alternative placement
order on any minor subject to this section if the court finds the
minor has a mental disorder requiring intensive treatment. Any
alternative placement order under this subdivision shall be made on
the record, in writing, and in accordance with Article 3 (commencing
with Section 6550) of Chapter 2 of Part 2 of Division 6.

602.5. The juvenile court shall report the complete criminal
history of any minor found to be a person adjudged to be a ward of
the court under Section 602 because of the commission of any felony
offense to the Department of Justice. The Department of Justice shall
retain this information and make it available in the same manner as
information gathered pursuant to Chapter 2 (commencing with Section
13100) of Title 3 of Part 4 of the Penal Code.

603. (a) No court shall have jurisdiction to conduct a preliminary
examination or to try the case of any person upon an accusatory
pleading charging that person with the commission of a public offense
or crime when the person was under the age of 18 years at the time
of the alleged commission thereof unless the matter has first been
submitted to the juvenile court by petition as provided in Article 7
(commencing with Section 650), and the juvenile court has made an
order directing that the person be prosecuted under the general law.
(b) This section shall not apply in any case involving a minor
against whom a complaint may be filed directly in a court of criminal
jurisdiction pursuant to Section 707.01.

603.5. (a) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, in a county
that adopts the provisions of this section, jurisdiction over the
case of a minor alleged to have committed only a violation of the
Vehicle Code classified as an infraction or a violation of a local
ordinance involving the driving, parking, or operation of a motor
vehicle, is with the superior court, except that the court may refer
to the juvenile court for adjudication, cases involving a minor who
has been adjudicated a ward of the juvenile court, or who has other
matters pending in the juvenile court.
(b) The cases specified in subdivision (a) shall not be governed
by the procedures set forth in the juvenile court law.
(c) Any provisions of juvenile court law requiring that
confidentiality be observed as to cases and proceedings, prohibiting
or restricting the disclosure of juvenile court records, or
restricting attendance by the public at juvenile court proceedings
shall not apply. The procedures for bail specified in Chapter 1
(commencing with Section 1268) of Title 10 of Part 2 of the Penal
Code shall apply.
(d) The provisions of this section shall apply in a county in
which the trial courts make the section applicable as to any matters
to be heard and the court has determined that there is available
funding for any increased costs.

604. (a) Whenever a case is before any court upon an accusatory
pleading and it is suggested or appears to the judge before whom the
person is brought that the person charged was, at the date the
offense is alleged to have been committed, under the age of 18 years,
the judge shall immediately suspend all proceedings against the
person on the charge. The judge shall examine into the age of the
person, and if, from the examination, it appears to his or her
satisfaction that the person was at the date the offense is alleged
to have been committed under the age of 18 years, he or she shall
immediately certify all of the following to the juvenile court of the
county:
(1) That the person (naming him or her) is charged with a crime
(briefly stating its nature).
(2) That the person appears to have been under the age of 18 years
at the date the offense is alleged to have been committed, giving
the date of birth of the person when known.
(3) That proceedings have been suspended against the person on the
charge by reason of his or her age, with the date of the suspension.
The judge shall attach a copy of the accusatory pleading to the
certification.
(b) When a court certifies a case to the juvenile court pursuant
to subdivision (a), it shall be deemed that jeopardy has not attached
by reason of the proceedings prior to certification, but the court
may not resume proceedings in the case, nor may a new proceeding
under the general law be commenced in any court with respect to the
same matter unless the juvenile court has found that the minor is not
a fit subject for consideration under the juvenile court law and has
ordered that proceedings under the general law resume or be
commenced.
(c) The certification and accusatory pleading shall be promptly
transmitted to the clerk of the juvenile court. Upon receipt thereof,
the clerk of the juvenile court shall immediately notify the
probation officer who shall immediately proceed in accordance with
Article 16 (commencing with Section 650).
(d) This section does not apply to any minor who may have a
complaint filed directly against him or her in a court of criminal
jurisdiction pursuant to Section 707.01.

605. Whenever a petition is filed in a juvenile court alleging that
a minor is a person within the description of Section 602, and while
the case is before the juvenile court, the statute of limitations
applicable under the general law to the offense alleged to bring the
minor within such description is suspended.

606. When a petition has been filed in a juvenile court, the minor
who is the subject of the petition shall not thereafter be subject to
criminal prosecution based on the facts giving rise to the petition
unless the juvenile court finds that the minor is not a fit and
proper subject to be dealt with under this chapter and orders that
criminal proceedings be resumed or instituted against him, or the
petition is transferred to a court of criminal jurisdiction pursuant
to subdivision (b) of Section 707.01.

607. (a) The court may retain jurisdiction over any person who is
found to be a ward or dependent child of the juvenile court until the
ward or dependent child attains the age of 21 years, except as
provided in subdivisions (b), (c), and (d).
(b) The court may retain jurisdiction over any person who is found
to be a person described in Section 602 by reason of the commission
of any of the offenses listed in subdivision (b), paragraph (2) of
subdivision (d), or subdivision (e) of Section 707 until that person
attains the age of 25 years if the person was committed to the
Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, Division of Juvenile
Facilities.
(c) The court shall not discharge any person from its jurisdiction
who has been committed to the Department of Corrections and
Rehabilitation, Division of Juvenile Facilities so long as the person
remains under the jurisdiction of the Department of Corrections and
Rehabilitation, Division of Juvenile Facilities, including periods of
extended control ordered pursuant to Section 1800.
(d) The court may retain jurisdiction over any person described in
Section 602 by reason of the commission of any of the offenses
listed in subdivision (b), paragraph (2) of subdivision (d), or
subdivision (e) of Section 707 who has been confined in a state
hospital or other appropriate public or private mental health
facility pursuant to Section 702.3 until that person has attained the
age of 25 years, unless the court which committed the person finds,
after notice and hearing, that the person's sanity has been restored.
(e) The court may retain jurisdiction over any person while that
person is the subject of a warrant for arrest issued pursuant to
Section 663.

607.1. (a) This section shall become operative on the 90th day
after the enactment of the act adding this section.
(b) (1) Notwithstanding Section 607, the court shall retain
jurisdiction as described in paragraph (2) over any person who meets
both of the following criteria:
(A) The person has been discharged from the physical custody of a
facility of the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation,
Division of Juvenile Facilities.
(B) The person is subject to subdivision (b) of Section 1766 or
subdivision (c) of Section 1766.01.
(2) The court shall retain jurisdiction over a person who is
described in paragraph (1) until one of the following applies:
(A) The person attains the age of 25 years.
(B) The court terminates jurisdiction pursuant to Section 778 or
779, or any other applicable law.
(C) Jurisdiction is terminated by operation of any other
applicable law.

607.5. (a) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, whenever the
juvenile court terminates jurisdiction over a ward who has also been
designated a dependent of the court, or upon release of a ward from
a facility that is not a foster care facility, a probation officer or
parole officer shall provide the person with, at a minimum, all of
the following:
(1) A written notice stating that the person is a former foster
child and may be eligible for the services and benefits that are
available to a former foster child through public and private
programs, including, but not limited to, any independent living
program for former foster children. Providing the proof of dependency
and wardship document described in All-County Letter 07-33 and
Section 31-525.6 of Chapter 31-500 of Division 31 of the State
Department of Social Services Manual of Policies and Procedures, as
it existed on January 1, 2010, shall satisfy this requirement.
(2) Existing information described in Section 31-525.61 of Chapter
31-500 of Division 31 of the State Department of Social Services
Manual of Policies and Procedures, as it existed on January 1, 2010,
that informs the person of the availability of assistance to enable
the person to apply for, and gain acceptance into, federal and state
programs that provide benefits to former foster children, including,
but not limited to, financial assistance, housing, and educational
resources for which he or she may be eligible.
(3) Existing information described in Section 31-525.61 of Chapter
31-500 of Division 31 of the State Department of Social Services
Manual of Policies and Procedures, as it existed on January 1, 2010,
that informs the person of the availability of assistance to enable
the person to apply for, and gain acceptance into, federal and state
programs that provide independent living services to youth 16 years
of age and over who may be eligible for services.
(b) This section shall apply to any ward who was previously
adjudged a dependent child of the court pursuant to Section 300 or a
child who at any time has been placed in foster care pursuant to
Section 727.
(c) Nothing in this section shall be interpreted to alter or amend
the obligations of probation officers under current law.

608. In any case in which a person is alleged to be a person
described in Section 601 or 602, or subdivision (a) of Section 604,
and the age of the person is at issue and the court finds that a
scientific or medical test would be of assistance in determining the
age of the person, the court may consider ordering an examination of
the minor using the method described in "The Permanent Mandibular
Third Molar" from the Journal of Forensic Odonto-Stomatology, Vol. 1:
No. 1: January-June 1983.