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Step 6Take the Necessary Steps to Advance
Your Juvenile
Case
|
At this point, you are ready to proceed in the order most
appropriate to
your situation. The next steps include:
- Obtaining the United States Attorney's signature on
the
required certification. See USAM 9-8.110.
- If you decide to prosecute the juvenile as an adult,
requesting authority
to move to transfer the juvenile to adult status. The Attorney
General delegated
the authority to approve these transfer motions to the Assistant
Attorney General
for the Criminal Division in an order reprinted at 28 C.F.R. 0.57.
That
authority has been redelegated to the United States Attorneys by
memo of the
Assistant Attorney General of the Criminal Division dated 7/20/95,
although the
Criminal Division should be notified prior to the filing of any
transfer motion.
Accord, USAM Blue Sheet amending 9-2.134 dated 6/19/95
(amending various
subsections of 9.2.000).
- Thus, unless transfer of a juvenile to adult status is
mandatory under
§ 5032, you must obtain authorization to file a transfer
motion. Your
request for authorization should include information concerning the
juvenile's
prior history, the nature of his or her involvement in the offense,
and when a
response is needed.
- Preparing and filing sealed court papers, including juvenile
complaint,
arrest warrant, information, and motion papers, if the filing of
the motion to
transfer is authorized.
- Negotiating an appropriate plea disposition, preferably before
the court
expends time on a transfer motion.
- Remember to provide notice separately to the juvenile's
parent of any
subpoena, request for an interview, arrest, and initial hearing
date. If a
parent cannot be located or the parent's interest is adverse, you
should ask for
appointment of a guardian ad litem under 18 U.S.C. § 5034. If
the juvenile
seeks to waive the presence of a parent or guardian at a time when
he or she is
not represented by counsel, you may wish to obtain temporary adult
counsel to
avoid any subsequent litigation of the juvenile's competence to
waive his
parent's presence. You also may wish to document on tape any
subsequent
statements of the juvenile in order to support a finding that the
statements were
both knowing and voluntary.
[cited in Criminal Resource Manual 48] | |