FINAL BILL REPORT

                  HB 1922

                         C 341 L 97

                     Synopsis as Enacted

Brief Description:  Granting courts of limited jurisdiction concurrent jurisdiction over certain juvenile offenses.

Sponsors:  Representatives Honeyford, Lisk, Mastin and Cooke.

House Committee on Law & Justice

Senate Committee on Law & Justice

Background:  The juvenile court is a division of the superior court.  Generally, the juvenile court has exclusive original jurisdiction over all matters relating to juveniles, including truancy petitions, dependency hearings, termination of parental rights, and juvenile offenders.

There are a few exceptions to the juvenile court's exclusive jurisdiction over juvenile offenders.  The juvenile court may transfer jurisdiction over a juvenile to adult court after holding a "decline hearing," and in some cases a juvenile who is 16 or 17 may be automatically transferred to adult court if the juvenile is alleged to have committed certain serious offenses and has a specified criminal history.  In addition, a court of limited jurisdiction may have jurisdiction over a 16- or 17-year-old juvenile who is alleged to have committed a traffic, fish, boating, or game offense, or traffic infraction.

Summary:  A county with a population between 200,000 and 350,000 and located east of the Cascades may authorize a pilot project to allow courts of limited jurisdiction to exercise concurrent jurisdiction with the juvenile court over certain juvenile offenders.

District and municipal courts may exercise concurrent jurisdiction over traffic or civil infractions, truancy petitions, and misdemeanor offenses.  Jurisdiction over these juvenile offenses may be exercised only if:  (1) the offense, if committed by an adult, would not be punishable by incarceration, or the standard range disposition for the juvenile offender does not include a term of confinement; (2) the court of limited jurisdiction has a computer system that is linked to the juvenile court data system and transmits information relating to cases over which the court has exercised jurisdiction to juvenile court for input into the data system; (3) the county legislative authority authorizes the creation of concurrent jurisdiction; and (4) the court of limited jurisdiction has an agreement with county juvenile detention facilities that the court of limited jurisdiction may order juveniles into the detention facility if a disposition without confinement would be a manifest injustice.

An expiration date of June 30, 2002 is provided for the pilot project.

Votes on Final Passage:

House  94 0

Senate 392(Senate amended)

House930(House concurred)

Effective:July 27,  1997