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Wyoming Legislature

Committee Meeting Summary of Proceedings

Select Committee on Juveniles

August 15, 2003

State Capitol, Room 302

Cheyenne, Wyoming

Meeting Attendance (Present)

Committee Members

Senator John Hanes, Cochairman;

Representative Ed Buchanan, Cochairman;

Senator Ken Decaria;

Representatives George Bagby and Monte Olsen;

Governor's Appointees:

Department of Family Services: Donna Sheen;

Department of Health, Substance Abuse Division: Dr. Diane Galloway, Ph.D.;

Attorney General's Office: Dan Wilde;

State Public Defender's Office: Ken Koski;

Wyoming County and Prosecuting Attorney's Association: Scott Sargent;

Wyoming Association of Sheriffs and Chiefs: Ric Paul;

State Advisory Panel on Juvenile Justice: John Frentheway.

Legislative Service Office

John Rivera, Senior Staff Attorney.

Others Present

Please refer to Appendix 1 to review the Committee Sign-in Sheet for a list of other individuals who attended the meeting.

Meeting Attendance (Absent)

Committee Members

Department of Health, Mental Health Division: Dr. Pablo Hernandez, M.D.;

Honorable Nena James, Third Judicial District Court Judge;

Department of Education: Kathy Wilder.

Written Meeting Materials and Handouts

All meeting materials and handouts provided to the Committee by the Legislative Service Office (LSO), public officials, lobbyists, and the public are referenced in the Meeting Materials Index, attached to the minutes. These materials are on file at the LSO and are part of the official record of the meeting. 

Call To Order

Chairman Buchanan called the meeting to order at 8:30 a.m.  The following sections summarize the Committee proceedings by topic.  Please refer to Appendix 2 to review the Committee Meeting Agenda.

Review of Subcommittee Tasks

Chairman Buchanan explained that each subcommittee appointed at the first meeting of the Select Committee would present a report of its activities, including bills it was recommending for consideration, followed by public comment on each bill and committee consideration of the bill.

Legal Process Subcommittee

Senator Decaria, Chairman of the Legal Process Subcommittee explained the subcommittee met two times and considered three topics, including possible renumbering of criminal offenses contained in Title 14, the proposed draft bill provided by the Department of Family Services, and creation of a family court system. The subcommittee decided not to proceed with the renumbering of criminal offenses or with further consideration of a family court system, but did bring the latter topic to the Select Committee in case further discussion of the issue is preferred.

04LSO-0081.W1, Title 14 revisions

Senator Decaria explained the subcommittee did extensively consider and amend the proposed legislation provided by the Department of Family Services, resulting in  04LSO-0081.W1, which  the subcommittee was recommending to the Select Committee for further consideration. He explained the purposes of the bill, including authorizing an intensive supervision program for juveniles, amending timeframes for the occurrence of various proceedings in juvenile court and requiring admissions from the parties before entry of a consent decree in abuse or neglect, delinquency or child in need of supervision (CHINS) actions.

Mr. Koski stated he supports the bill, except for the provisions requiring an admission prior to entry of a consent decree. Senator Decaria replied that defense attorneys have stated the same concern, but prosecutors say that, without an admission, consent decrees won't be used.  Ms. Sheen stated her contact at the American Bar Association Center for Children and the Law believes consent decrees cause problems with the timelines required in the federal Adoption and Safe Families Act and should be eliminated, but the proposed language in the bill is a compromise between those positions.

Mr. Dave Clark, Carbon County prosecuting attorney, stated the requirement of an admission before entry of a consent decree interferes with the prosecutor's discretion. Mr. Stephen Weichman, Teton County prosecuting attorney, stated he wouldn't propose a consent decree unless he had an admission, but doesn't think that has to be a statutory requirement.

After receiving public comment, the Committee considered the bill. Approved amendments to the bill included:

·        In W.S. 14-3-412(b)(v) and 14-6-412(b)(v) deleting "and the basis for the juvenile court's jurisdiction in the matter";

·        In all places in the bill where the following proposed language appears, "where an extension of time is required for such reasons as newly discovered evidence, unavoidable delays in obtaining critical witnesses or unforeseen personal emergencies of parties or counsel", the language should be deleted and the following language inserted ", unless the court finds good cause to delay or postpone the hearing";

·        In W.S. 14-3-409(c), 14-6-209(c) and 14-6-409(c), insert at the end of the subsection, "In no case shall the court hold the adjudicatory hearing more than ninety (90) days after the date the petition is filed.";

·        In W.S. 14-3-428(a), 14-6-228(a) and 14-6-428(a), delete all new language reading "if the facts are admitted and establish a basis for the adjudication";

·        Delete W.S. 14-3-417(b) from the bill (thereby requiring deletion of all of W.S. 14-3-417 from the bill);

·        In W.S. 14-6-409(c) strike "forty-five (45) days" and insert "sixty (60) days".

After considering the motions to amend 04LSO-0081.W1, Representative Bagby, seconded by Representative Olsen, moved to recommend the bill, as amended, to the Joint Judiciary Interim Committee for further consideration. The motion carried on a voice vote.

Child Representation Subcommittee

Mr. Koski, Chairman, advised the subcommittee had met three times.  At the first meeting, the subcommittee considered three options to provide legal representation to children in the legal process, including keeping the status quo, shifting duties to the Public Defender's Office or creating a separate office as exist in Alaska and Colorado. The subcommittee decided upon proposing an Office of the Children's Representative (OCR), modeled to some extent after the Colorado Office of the Child's Representative. LSO staff was directed to draft a bill consistent with the Subcommittee's decision.

At the second meeting, the subcommittee examined the roles of guardians ad litem and other persons who might represent juveniles in proceedings. The subcommitteedirected LSO to draft a bill for subcommittee consideration.

At the third meeting of the subcommittee, the subcommittee consolidated its proposed bills into a single bill. Subsequently, members met with the Governor, who supports the concept of good representation for children, but is concerned that the bill placed the OCR within the Governor's Office. Other concerns Mr. Koski advised the Committee about include: the proposed definition of "guardian ad litem"; funding for the office; how court appointed special advocates (CASA) will be used; whether CASA volunteers will be under the authority of the OCR; and the definition of "lay advocate".

04LSO-0021.W3, Representation of children

Public comment was received from Ros Kor, Prevent Child Abuse Wyoming, who distributed Appendix 3, Linda Kirkbride, Laramie County CASA, Gayla Lindquist, a Colorado attorney who has been a CASA volunteer, Representative Liz Gentile and Donna Messerli, Wyoming County Commissioners' Association. Concern was expressed that the definition of "Guardian ad litem" required an attorney, CASA volunteers would not be utilized as extensively as in other states and that a single attorney might represent both the child and the child's best interests, which may place the attorney in an ethical dilemma.

Ms. Sheen distributed Appendix 4, containing proposed revisions she drafted to W.S. 14-3-416, 14-6-216, 14-6-222, 14-6-416 and 14-6-422.

After receiving public comment, the Committee considered the bill. Approved amendments to the bill included:

• Page 13-line 13, delete "governor's office" insert "department of family services";
• In all provisions where a lay advocate may be appointed by the court, delete "from the office of the children's representative";
• Page 9-line 7, delete "ensure" insert "encourage".

After considering the motions to amend the bill, Cochairman Hanes, seconded by Representative Bagby, moved to recommend the bill, as amended, to the Joint Judiciary Interim Committee for further consideration. The motion carried on a voice vote.

Child Protection/Multidisciplinary Team Subcommittee

Mr. Wilde, Chairman, advised the subcommittee is recommending three bills for consideration by the Committee. The bills were a consolidation of several bills that were drafted at the subcommittee's direction.  He proceeded to explain 04LSO-0084.W2, Child protection amendments, 04LSO-0049.W3, Involuntary commitment of juveniles, and 04LSO-0048.W1, Department of family services-child care facilities.

04LSO-0084.W2, Child protection amendments

The Committee heard public comment on 04LSO-0084.W2, from Mr. Clark, Ms. Kor and Mr. Weichman. Mr. Sargent explained the bill addressed most of the concerns expressed. Dr. Galloway questioned the language, "substance abuse risk factors" as not being meaningful to substance abuse professionals. Chairman Buchanan suggested Dr. Galloway develop language for future consideration by the Joint Judiciary Interim Committee.

After receiving public comment, the Committee considered 04LSO-0084.W2. Approved amendments to the bill included:

• Page 35-line 11, page 41-line 1, and page 46-line 15, after "The" insert "child's attorney or";
• LSO staff should research and insert wherever in Title 14 it is necessary or appropriate to place the definition of "transportation" currently proposed as W.S. 14-3-402(a)(xx);
• Page 7-line 8, after the first "that" insert ", upon investigation,"; strike "upon investigation that"; page 7-line 9, strike "of" insert "that"; page 7-line 9, strike "exists" insert "occurred";
• Page 7-line 2, after "that" insert ", upon investigation,";
• Page 9-line 19, after "knows" delete through "suspect" on page 9-line 21;
• Page 10-line 22, delete "department" insert "local child protective agency";
• LSO staff should locate all references in this bill and in Title 14 that reference "seventy-two (72) hours" and amend to "forty-eight (48) hours, excluding weekends and legal holidays";
• Conform W.S. 14-3-409 to the changes agreed to in 04LSO-0081.W1 earlier in the day;
• In 14-3-427(a), 14-6-227(a) and 14-6-427(a), bring in existing paragraph (v) and after "child" insert ", including any pertinent family information,";
• Page 37-line 8, delete "and" insert "or".

After considering the motions to amend 04LSO-0084.W2, Cochairman Hanes, seconded by Representative Bagby, moved to recommend the bill, as amended, to the Joint Judiciary Interim Committee for further consideration. The motion carried on a voice vote.

04LSO-0048.W1, Department of family services-child care facilities

The Committee then considered 04LSO-0048.W1. After being advised by Mr. Wilde that the draft legislation repeals conflicting statutes and would not affect current practices, Chairman Buchanan called for public comment. Hearing none, Representative Olsen, seconded by Representative Bagby, moved to recommend the bill, as amended, to the Joint Judiciary Interim Committee for further consideration. The motion carried on a voice vote.

04LSO-0049.W3, involuntary commitment of juveniles

Mr. Weichman advised that Title 25 is a major bone of contention for prosecutors. The Department of Health has not promulgated any rules or regulations or provided other guidance how to implement the involuntary commitment provisions. Mixing Title 25 involuntary commitment procedures with Title 14 is a mistake in his opinion. He recommended not proceeding with this bill because Title 25 procedures are implicated. Chairman Buchanan asked Mr. Weichman to provide 2 or 3 pages of written comments on his objections. Cochairman Hanes asked Mr. Weichman to include proposed amendments to the bill.

After receiving public comment, the Committee considered 04LSO-0049.W3. Approved amendments to the bill included:

• Page 5-line 1, after the first "child" insert "." and delete balance of sentence;
• Page 5-line 3, after "(c)(i)" insert "(B)";
• Page 8-line 7, delete all new language and insert "in further proceedings";
• Page 8-line 23, after the first "child" insert ";" and delete balance of sentence.

After further discussion whether to recommend the bill, Cochairman Hanes moved, seconded by Representative Bagby, not to recommend 04LSO-0049.W3  , as amended, to the Joint Judiciary Interim Committee, but urge the Joint Judiciary Interim Committee to request from Management Council the authority to study the topic of involuntary commitment of juveniles in the 2004 interim. The motion carried by voice vote.

Final Report and Recommendations

Cochairman Hanes advised that a final report, including the recommendations of the Select Committee and the revised draft bills being recommended are due to be submitted to the Joint Judiciary Interim Committee by September 1, but since that date is a holiday, it will be ready for submission no later than the next business day, September 2, 2003. Committee members are urged to review the revised bills which staff will provide by email in a few days after the conclusion of this meeting and provide comments as quickly as possible to meet the deadline.

The Cochairmen thanked all Committee members for their intense efforts over the last few months in reviewing issues relating to juveniles and providing comprehensive draft legislation that the Committee can recommend to the Joint Judiciary Interim Committee.

Meeting Adjournment

There being no further business, Chairman Buchanan adjourned the meeting of the Committee at 4:40 p.m.

Respectfully submitted,

Senator John Hanes, Cochairman                                  Representative Ed Buchanan, Cochairman