Single Point of Entry

Utilizing the Best Services and Resources for Each Kid to Make a Difference!

Legislation enacted in 2009 in an effort to have a more comprehensive approach to juvenile in the criminal justice system.

Prior to the Single Point of Entry being enacted, juveniles appeared in front of Municipal Court, Circuit Court or Juvenile Court without little oversight or review of the tickets to ensure most appropriate services and court put in place for that juvenile.

Now all tickets are reviewed by District/County Attorneys Offices and teams, and the most appropriate avenue for juvenile is discussed.

Single Point of Entry

District attorney shall establish objective criteria, screening and assessment procedures for determining the court for appropriate disposition in cooperation and coordination with each municipality in the jurisdiction of the District Court.

Single Point of Entry Statute

14-6-203(f)

District attorney shall serve as single point of entry for all minors alleged to have committed a crime.

Single Point of Entry Statute14-6-203(f)

Copies of all charging documents, reports or citations for cases shall be forwarded to the district attorney prior to the filing of the charge, report or citation in municipal or city court.


The following cases, excluding status cases, may be originally commenced either in the juvenile court or in the district court or inferior court having jurisdiction:

(i) Violations of municipal ordinances, except that if a juvenile is sentenced in a municipal court to a sentence exceeding ten (10) days of jail or detention, the municipal court shall provide to the district attorney in the juvenile’s county of residence and the department of education a copy of the judgment and sentence;


(ii) All misdemeanors except: (A) Those cases within the exclusive

jurisdiction of the juvenile court; (B) If a juvenile is sentenced in municipal

or circuit court to a sentence exceeding ten (10) days of jail or detention, the municipal or circuit court shall provide to the district attorney in the juvenile’s county of residence and the department of education a copy of the judgment and sentence;


(iii) Felony cases in which the minor has attained the age of seventeen (17) years. The prosecuting attorney shall consider those determinative factors set forth in W.S. 14-6-237(b)(i) through (vi) prior to commencing an action in the district court under this paragraph;

(iv) Cases in which the minor has attained the age of fourteen (14) years and is charged with a violent felony as defined in W.S. 6-1-104(a)(xii);


(v) Cases in which a minor who has attained the age of fourteen (14) years is charged with a felony and has previously been adjudicated as a delinquent under two (2) separately filed juvenile petitions for acts which if committed by an adult constitutes felonies.


Community Service & Victim Apology Letters

The youth completed

1,429 community

service hours last year

14-6-203(g)Except as provided by subsection (j) of

this section, all information, reports or records made, received or kept by any municipal, county or state officer or employee evidencing any legal or administrative process or disposition resulting from a minor’s misconduct are confidential and subject to the provisions of this act. The existence of the information, reports or records or contents thereof shall not be disclosed by any person unless:

Confidentiality of Records

(i) Disclosure results from an action brought or authorized by the district attorney in a court of public record;

(ii) The person the records concern is under eighteen (18) years of age and, in conjunction with one (1) of his parents or with the ratification of the court, authorizes the disclosure;

(iii) The person the records concern is eighteen (18) years of age or older and authorizes the disclosure;

Confidentiality of Records, cont.

(iv) The disclosure results from the information being shared with or between designated employees of any court, any law enforcement, agency, any prosecutor’s office, any employee of the victim services division within the office of the attorney general, any probation office or any employee of the department of family services or the minor’s past or present school district who has been designated to share the information by the department of family services or by the school district or anyone else designated by the district attorney in determining the appropriate court pursuant to a single point of entry assessment under this section.


14-6-203(j)Nothing contained in this act is

construed to require confidentiality of any matter, legal record, identity or disposition pertaining to a minor charged or processed though any municipal or circuit court.


Mentoring

HOW HAVE THE COUNTIES AROUND THE STATE IMPLEMENTED THE

SINGLE POINT OF ENTRY PROCESS IN THEIR COUNTIES?

Each county handles their Single Point of Entry process differently depending upon their resources and what avenue has the best resources for that particular juvenile.

Some counties have Juvenile Diversion Programs, some divert juveniles to Circuit Court, some have probation in their Municipal Courts, etc.

Goal is to review the juvenile for their particular needs and place that juvenile in the most appropriate court/track, depending upon juvenile’s needs and county’s resources.

Consistency is also considered.

Screens Single Point of Entry through our Juvenile Diversion Office and the County Attorney’s Office.

Have access to a number of databases to review a juvenile’s criminal history, law enforcement contact, and school records.

Initial screening conducted by Juvenile Diversion Office to see if qualifies for Diversion Program.

If meets certain criteria, then forwarded to County Attorney to review for Court involvement, whether that be Municipal, Circuit, District or Juvenile Court. County Attorney may then consult with parent, school, DFS, law enforcement or others to determine most appropriate Court for juvenile given needs and services.

Campbell County

Has developed criteria and screening to review juveniles:

Prior Criminal History Law Enforcement Contacts School Attendance and Grades School Disciplinary Log Parent Input Law Enforcement Input Family History Age of Juvenile DFS Reports Prior Juvenile Court Involvement

Campbell County

Tickets are separated for juveniles by law enforcement and picked up by Juvenile Diversion Clerk. Initial screening takes place and tickets/reports go into one of four categories:

Campbell County

A. Qualifying Offenses: First time offenders who have a qualifying offense for Juvenile Diversion are sent an invitation letter to join the Juvenile Diversion Program. Some examples of qualifying offenses include:

Minor in Possession/Minor in Consumption Use of a Controlled Substance Larceny/Shoplifting Breach of Peace Destruction of Property Battery (minor) Interference with a Peace Officer Unauthorized Use of Motor Vehicle (minor) Dangerous Missiles Some felony offenses. A juvenile will not be denied admission into the Juvenile

Diversion Program simply because he has committed a felony. If he is a first time offender, and if the felony is a nonviolent one, based upon all of the facts and circumstances of the case, including the family setting of the juvenile, that the juvenile is appropriate for diversion by the discretion of the Juvenile Attorney, then he may be offered diversion.

Others as deemed appropriate for the program.

Campbell County

B. Early Age and Teen Intervention Children: Out of control behaviors, truant children or

criminal offenses that are not charged due to child’s age or the sufficiency of the evidence.

Referred through school or parent referral Reviewed by Early Age and Teen Intervention

personnel to determine if appropriate for program.

Those who violate the terms and conditions of the program or are needing additional services or more intensive services, are referred to the County Attorney for possible CHINS petition.

Campbell County

C. Non-qualifying Offenses: Some offenses do not qualify for Diversion due to the nature of the charge, or because they have previously participated in Diversion or are repeat offenders. Those cases are forwarded the County Attorney/Deputy Attorney for review to determine what Court is most appropriate for that juvenile. Non-qualifying offenses for Juvenile Diversion include:

• Repeat offenders, or those with a prior offense, who do not qualify for diversion

*In some instances, a prior minor citation, (for example, a smoking ticket, or a minor traffic violation), may be overlooked to see if a second offense would qualify for participation in the Juvenile Diversion Program.

Violent Breach of Peace and violent Battery citations, all others will be screened on a case by case basis

Eluding a Peace Officer Unauthorized Use of a Motor Vehicle (resulting in an accident) Sexual Assaults Other Crimes of Violence Offenses with significant restitution owing to a victim Some Felony offenses

Campbell County

D. Additional Offenses: In addition to those offenses listed above, some offenses do not qualify for Juvenile Diversion and are forwarded to the Court of origin. Those offenses include:

Minor Traffic Offenses, including Failure to stop at a

Stop Sign, Speeding, Etc. Smoking Tobacco Citations Game and Fish Violations Driving under the Influence Reckless Driving with an Accident Leaving the Scene of an Accident

Campbell County

The Juvenile Diversion Data Entry Clerk performs a records check or “names table” on all juvenile citations and long form reports that are screened through the Single Point of Entry process.

Campbell County

For the juveniles who qualify for the Juvenile Diversion Program, an invitation is mailed to them inviting them to participate in the Juvenile Diversion Program. If a juvenile fails to respond to the Juvenile Diversion invitation, they are then screened by the County Attorney/Deputy Attorney to determine what Court is most appropriate.

Campbell County

For those juveniles who do not qualify for Juvenile Diversion or fail to respond to Juvenile Diversion invitation, the following information is forwarded to the County Attorney/Deputy Attorney for review and consideration:

Copy of citation or long form report Juvenile Diversion review sheet Juvenile’s background history (names table) All relevant law enforcement reports Juvenile school records

Campbell County

The review sheet is then forwarded back to the Juvenile Diversion Data Entry Clerk for documenting into FACTS system. The original citation is then forwarded to the appropriate Court or a juvenile action is initiated on behalf of the juvenile.

Campbell County

Community Safety Day

All juvenile citations are delivered to County Attorney’s Office.

Information reviewed by juvenile prosecutor who determines if case should stay in Municipal or Circuit Court, should be filed in Juvenile Court or offered the Diversion program.

All cases other than traffic, curfew or tobacco cases are to be cited in Circuit Court rather than Municipal Court.

Albany County

CAMP POSTCARD

County Attorney’s Office reviews tickets to determine if they will remain in current Court for which the citation was issued.

Carbon County

Carbon County has developed criteria when screening juveniles:

A. Diversion Criteria: i. Only juveniles who are charged with a misdemeanor offense are

eligible for pre-court diversion through Municipal or Circuit Court. The Carbon County Attorney’s Office, in coordination with available diversion programs may make exception to this general rule in any felony case.

ii. Juveniles may be recommended for pre-court diversion by the Carbon County Attorney’s Office upon the recommendation of law enforcement. The factors to be considered for pre-court diversion include, but are not limited to:

(1) Age of the juvenile: Juveniles of any age are eligible for pre-court diversion. (Juveniles under the age of 14 are to be strongly considered for diversion to avoid early system involvement.)

(2) Nature of the offense. (3) Residence of the juvenile within Carbon County. (4) History of offenses or law enforcement contacts: Generally, only first time

offenders are considered for pre-court diversion.

Carbon County

B. Circuit and Municipal Court Criteria: Juveniles cited for misdemeanor violations into the Municipal

Court may be referred to the Circuit Court when the juvenile is charged with a misdemeanor ordinance violation and the offense resulted in personal injury and/or property damage that may require an order of restitution:

First offense status offenses will generally be handled within the jurisdiction in which they occur. However, copies of runaway citations and truancy citations will be forwarded to the Carbon County Attorney’s Office for data gathering purposes.

Generally, all offenses enumerated above and all other misdemeanor juvenile violations that occur within municipalities will be cited into their respective Municipal Court. Those occurring within the county or towns without Municipal Courts will be cited into Circuit Court.

Carbon County

C. District Court Criteria: All felony offenses will be forwarded to and will be processed by the Carbon County Attorney.

(i) Juveniles cited for misdemeanor violations into the Municipal

Court and/or Circuit Court may also be referred to the District Court when one or more of the following criteria is present:

(1) The juvenile is charged with a misdemeanor but the offense resulted in personal injury and/or property damage that may fall short of a felony or high misdemeanor charge.

◦ (2) The juvenile is charged with a misdemeanor involving the following

offenses:

A. Domestic Violence B. Sexual Battery C. Cruelty to Animals D. Assault on Elderly or Handicapped E. Child Endangering

Carbon County

◦ (3) The juvenile has Two (2) or more previous violations in any of the following areas:

Possession and/or Use of a Controlled Substance Alcohol Related Offenses Violence and Tumultuous Acts Habitual Running Away Habitual Truancy

◦ (4) The juvenile needs services that cannot be offered at the lower

court level including but not limited to out of home placement, intensive supervision, psychiatric services or evaluation services, in-patient services, etc.

◦ (5) The juvenile is currently on State Probation or under the jurisdiction

of the District Court.

◦ (6) The juvenile has a history with law enforcement or other judicial jurisdictions outside Carbon County.

Carbon County

Reaching Out to Help

When a resident of Crook County, under the age of 18, or over 18 and still enrolled in high school, is charged with a violation of the law, the county attorney reviews the juvenile and his violation with the “single point of entry” committee, which consists of the county attorney, deputy county attorney, Wyoming DFS probation officer, and the administrator of the Crook County Community Juvenile Services. Upon preliminary review of juvenile and his record, a recommendation is made whether to refer the juvenile to the diversion program. If preliminary review shows not appropriate for diversion, recommendations are made that the citation be filed in a court of jurisdiction within the county. (Circuit, Juvenile, or Municipal Court).

Crook County

Camping in the Bighorns!

Meets every Wednesday morning. Present at meeting is DFS, school district,

DOC, Mercer House, Diversion Program, and District Attorney’s Office.

Make determination which Court or disposition is most appropriate.

Natrona County

Overcoming Our Fears

Together

All citations are screened once a week Team that reviews includes DFS, School

Resource Officer, County Attorney, and County probation.

Grades, history, etc. are considered when determining if Diversion will be offered or which Court to place the juvenile in.

Park County

Corrective Thinking Classes

Committee meets every Monday morning. Participants include School Resource Officers,

DFS probation supervisor & CPS supervisor, Juvenile Justice Probation Officers (diversion, truancy, misdemeanors, & Juvenile Drug Court).

Review each report and discuss juvenile, school situation, home life, to determine which Court is most appropriate.

Municipal court primarily traffic court and most juvenile citations are routed through Circuit Court.

Sheridan County

And the winners are....

NOT ONLY THE KIDS BUT THE WHOLE

COMMUNITY!

Single Point of Entry

Documents

Transcript of Single Point of Entry