REPORT TITLE: 
Juvenile Record Sharing


DESCRIPTION:
Allows limited accessibility to juvenile records to school
officials and persons involved in the treatment and supervision
of minors in the areas of child abuse and law enforcement.
Requires notification from a court to appropriate school
officials when a minor has committed any felony or misdemeanor
involving curfew, gambling, alcohol, drugs, tobacco products,
carrying of weapons, a sexual offense found in part V of chapter
707, HRS, assault or battery, larceny, vandalism, or graffiti.
(SD1)

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                        2996
THE SENATE                              S.B. NO.           S.D. 1
TWENTIETH LEGISLATURE, 2000                                
STATE OF HAWAII                                            
                                                             
________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________


                     A BILL FOR AN ACT

RELATING TO JUVENILES.



BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:

 1      SECTION 1.  The legislature finds that while juvenile court
 
 2 records, in general, should be kept confidential, a limited
 
 3 exception is needed to that confidentiality in cases involving
 
 4 serious acts of violence that could jeopardize the safety and
 
 5 welfare of Hawaii's citizens.  Even in these selected cases, the
 
 6 dissemination of juvenile criminal records should be as limited
 
 7 as possible, consistent with the need to work with a student in
 
 8 an appropriate fashion, and the need to protect potentially
 
 9 vulnerable school staff and other students over whom the school
 
10 staff exercises direct supervision and responsibility.
 
11      The purpose of this Act is to:
 
12      (1)  Allow limited accessibility to juvenile records to
 
13           school officials and persons involved in the treatment
 
14           and supervision of minors in the areas of child abuse
 
15           and law enforcement; and
 
16      (2)  Require notification from a court to appropriate school
 
17           officials when a minor has committed any felony or
 
18           misdemeanor involving curfew, gambling, alcohol, drugs,
 
19           tobacco products, carrying of weapons, a sexual offense
 

 
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 1           in part V of chapter 707, Hawaii Revised Statutes,
 
 2           assault or battery, larceny, vandalism, or graffiti.
 
 3      SECTION 2.  Chapter 571, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended
 
 4 by adding two new sections to be appropriately designated and to
 
 5 read as follows:
 
 6      "§571-     Limited accessibility to juvenile records.
 
 7 Notwithstanding any other provision to the contrary, petitions
 
 8 filed in any juvenile court proceedings, probation officer
 
 9 reports, and all other documents files in that case or made
 
10 available to the probation officer in making a report, or made
 
11 available to the judge, referee, or other hearing officer shall
 
12 be made available to members of children's multidisciplinary
 
13 teams, persons, or agencies providing treatment or supervision of
 
14 the minor in the areas of child abuse and law enforcement.
 
15      §571-     Written notice; school district.  (a)  Written
 
16 notice that a minor enrolled in a public school, kindergarten to
 
17 grade 12 inclusive, has been found by a court of competent
 
18 jurisdiction to have committed any felony or misdemeanor
 
19 involving curfew, gambling, alcohol, drugs, tobacco products,
 
20 carrying of weapons, a sexual offense in part V of chapter 707,
 
21 assault or battery, larceny, vandalism, or graffiti shall be
 
22 provided by the court, within seven days, to the district of
 
23 attendance.  Written notice shall include only the offense found
 

 
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                                     S.B. NO.           S.D. 1
                                                        
                                                        

 
 1 to have been committed by the minor and the disposition of the
 
 2 minor's case.
 
 3      (b)  The notice shall be expeditiously transmitted to the
 
 4 principal at the school of attendance.  The principal shall
 
 5 expeditiously disseminate the information to those counselors
 
 6 directly supervising or reporting on the behavior or progress of
 
 7 the minor.  The principal may disseminate the information to any
 
 8 teacher or administrator directly supervising or reporting on the
 
 9 behavior or progress of the minor whom the principal believes
 
10 needs the information to work with the pupil in an appropriate
 
11 fashion, to avoid being needlessly vulnerable or to protect other
 
12 persons from needless vulnerability.
 
13      (c)  Any information received by a teacher, counselor, or
 
14 administrator under this section shall be received in confidence
 
15 for the limited purpose of rehabilitating the minor and
 
16 protecting students and staff, and shall not be further
 
17 disseminated by the teacher, counselor, or administrator, except
 
18 insofar as communication with the juvenile, juvenile's parents or
 
19 guardians, law enforcement personnel, and probation officer is
 
20 needed to effectuate the juvenile's rehabilitation or protect
 
21 students and staff.
 
22      (d)  If a minor is removed from public school as a result of
 
23 the court's finding that the minor has committed a felony or
 

 
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                                     S.B. NO.           S.D. 1
                                                        
                                                        

 
 1 misdemeanor involving curfew, gambling, alcohol, drugs, tobacco
 
 2 products, carrying of weapons, a sexual offense in part V of
 
 3 chapter 707, assault or battery, larceny, vandalism, or graffiti,
 
 4 the information shall be maintained in a confidential file.
 
 5      (e)  Each probation report filed with the court concerning a
 
 6 minor whose record is subject to dissemination under this section
 
 7 shall include the name of the school at which the minor is
 
 8 currently enrolled.
 
 9      (f)  Any information received from the court shall be kept
 
10 in a separate confidential file at the school of attendance and
 
11 shall be transferred to the minor's subsequent schools of
 
12 attendance and maintained until the minor graduates from high
 
13 school, is released from juvenile court jurisdiction, or reaches
 
14 the age of eighteen, whichever occurs first.  After that time the
 
15 confidential record shall be destroyed.
 
16      (g)  At any time after the date by which a record required
 
17 to be destroyed by this section should have been destroyed, the
 
18 minor or minor's parent or guardian shall have the right to make
 
19 a written request to the principal of the school that the minor's
 
20 school records be reviewed to ensure that the record has been
 
21 destroyed.  Upon completion of any requested review and no later
 
22 than thirty days after the request for the review was received,
 
23 the principal or designee shall respond in writing to the written
 

 
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 1 request and either shall confirm that the record has been
 
 2 destroyed or, if the record has not been destroyed, shall explain
 
 3 why destruction has not yet occurred.
 
 4      (h)  Except as provided by subsection (d), no liability
 
 5 shall attach to any person who transmits or fails to transmit any
 
 6 notice or information required under this section.
 
 7      (i)  No liability shall attach to any person who transmits
 
 8 or fails to transmit any notice or information required under
 
 9 this section.  An intentional violation of the confidentiality
 
10 provisions of subsection (c) is a misdemeanor punishable by a
 
11 fine not to exceed $500."
 
12      SECTION 3.  New statutory material is underscored.
 
13      SECTION 4.  This Act shall take effect upon its approval.