3900-S3 AMH RADC H2774

3900-S3 AMH RADC H2774.1

3SHB 3900 - H AMD 137 WITHDRAWN 3-17-97

By Representative Radcliff

On page 102, after line 21, insert the following:

"Sec. 36. RCW 72.01.410 and 1994 c 220 s 1 are each amended to read as follows:

(1) Whenever any child under the age of eighteen is convicted in the courts of this state of a crime amounting to a felony, and is committed for a term of confinement in a correctional institution wherein adults are confined, the secretary of corrections, after making an independent assessment and evaluation of the child and determining that the needs and correctional goals for the child could better be met by the programs and housing environment provided by the juvenile correctional institution, with the consent of the secretary of social and health services, may transfer such child to a juvenile correctional institution, or to such other institution as is now, or may hereafter be authorized by law to receive such child, until such time as the child arrives at the age of twenty-one years, whereupon the child shall be returned to the institution of original commitment. Retention within a juvenile detention facility or return to an adult correctional facility shall regularly be reviewed by the secretary of corrections and the secretary of social and health services with a determination made based on the level of maturity and sophistication of the individual, the behavior and progress while within the juvenile detention facility, security needs, and the program/treatment alternatives which would best prepare the individual for a successful return to the community. Notice of such transfers shall be given to the clerk of the committing court and the parents, guardian, or next of kin of such child, if known.

(2) A juvenile offender under the age of eighteen who is housed in an adult corrections facility must be placed in housing units separated from adult offenders until the juvenile reaches the age of eighteen."

Renumber the sections following consecutively, correct internal references accordingly, and correct the title.

EFFECT: Requires juveniles who are convicted as adults and sentenced to prison to be housed in housing units separate from adult offenders until the juvenile reaches the age of eighteen.