[Congressional Bills 104th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 3494 Introduced in House (IH)]







104th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 3494

To amend the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act of 1974 to 
  identify violent and hard-core juvenile offenders and treat them as 
                    adults, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                              May 20, 1996

  Mr. Canady of Florida (for himself, Mr. Weldon of Florida, and Mr. 
 Hutchinson) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
Committee on Economic and Educational Opportunities, and in addition to 
    the Committee on the Judiciary, for a period to be subsequently 
   determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such 
 provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To amend the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act of 1974 to 
  identify violent and hard-core juvenile offenders and treat them as 
                    adults, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Violent and Hard-Core Juvenile 
Offender Reform Act of 1996''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Section 101(a)(11) of the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency 
Prevention Act of 1974 (42 U.S.C. 5601(a)(11)) is amended by inserting 
before the semicolon the following: ``and on identifying violent and 
hard-core juvenile offenders who should be prosecuted in the adult 
criminal justice system as adults and not as juveniles''.

SEC. 3. AMENDMENTS TO JUVENILE JUSTICE AND DELINQUENCY PREVENTION ACT 
              OF 1974.

    (a) Purpose.--Section 102(a) of the Juvenile Justice and 
Delinquency Prevention Act of 1974 (42 U.S.C. 5602(a)) is amended--
            (1) by striking ``and'' at the end of paragraph (10);
            (2) by striking the period at the end of paragraph (11) and 
        inserting ``; and''; and
            (3) by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
            ``(12) to assist State and local governments in protecting 
        public safety by identifying violent and hard-core juvenile 
        offenders and transferring such offenders out of the 
        jurisdiction of the juvenile justice system and into the 
        jurisdiction of adult criminal court.''.
    (b) Serious Habitual Offender Defined.--Section 103 of such Act (42 
U.S.C. 5603) is amended--
            (1) in paragraph (22), by striking ``and'' at the end of 
        clause (iii);
            (2) by striking the period at the end of paragraph (23) and 
        inserting ``; and''; and
            (3) by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
            ``(24) the term `serious habitual offender' means a 
        juvenile who meets one or more of the following criteria:
                    ``(A) Arrest for a capital, life, or first degree 
                aggravated sexual offense.
                    ``(B) Not less than 5 arrests, with 3 arrests 
                chargeable as felonies and at least 3 arrests occurring 
                within the preceding 12 months.
                    ``(C) Not less than 10 arrests, with 2 arrests 
                chargeable as felonies and at least 3 arrests occurring 
                within the preceding 12 months.
                    ``(D) At least 1 arrest for conduct involving 3 or 
                more burglaries, robberies, or sexual assaults within 
                the preceding 12 months.
                    ``(E) Not less than 10 arrests, with 8 or more 
                arrests for misdemeanor crimes involving theft, 
                assault, battery, narcotics, controlled substance 
                abuse, or possession of weapons, and at least 3 arrests 
                occurring within the preceding 12 months.''.
    (c) Requirements for State Plan.--Section 223 of such Act (42 
U.S.C. 5633) is amended--
            (1) in subsection (a)--
                    (A) in paragraph (10)--
                            (i) by redesignating subparagraphs (D) 
                        through (O) as subparagraphs (E) through (P), 
                        respectively; and
                            (ii) by inserting after subparagraph (C) 
                        the following new subparagraph:
                    ``(D) the establishment of serious habitual 
                offender comprehensive action programs consistent with 
                subsection (b);'';
                    (B) by redesignating paragraphs (24) and (25) as 
                paragraphs (28) and (29), respectively; and
                    (C) by inserting after paragraph (23) the following 
                new paragraphs:
            ``(24) provide for the establishment and maintenance of an 
        effective juvenile justice system that requires the prosecution 
        of juveniles 14 years of age and older as adults in criminal 
        court, rather than in juvenile delinquency proceedings, for 
        conduct constituting--
                    ``(A) murder or attempted murder;
                    ``(B) robbery while armed with a dangerous or 
                deadly weapon;
                    ``(C) battery or assault while armed with a 
                dangerous or deadly weapon;
                    ``(D) forcible rape;
                    ``(E) any serious drug offense which, if committed 
                by an adult subject to Federal jurisdiction, would be 
                punishable under section 401(b)(1)(A) or 408 of the 
                Controlled Substances Act (21 U.S.C. 841(b)(1)(A), 848) 
                or section 1010(b)(1)(A) of the Controlled Substances 
                Import and Export Act (21 U.S.C. 960(b)(1)(A));
                    ``(F) any other crime the State determines 
                appropriate; and
                    ``(G) the third or subsequent occasion, unrelated 
                to any previous occasion, on which such juveniles 
                engage in conduct for which adults could be imprisoned 
                for a term exceeding 1 year; unless, on a case-by-case 
                basis--
                            ``(i) a court determines that trying such a 
                        juvenile as an adult is not in the interest of 
                        justice under State law;
                            ``(ii) such court records its reasons for 
                        making such a determination in writing and 
                        makes such record available for inspection by 
                        the public at large; and
                            ``(iii) the court makes a record in writing 
                        of the disposition of the juvenile in the 
                        juvenile justice system available to the public 
                        to the same extent that records of adult 
                        criminal proceedings are open to the public, 
                        notwithstanding any other law requiring such 
                        information to be withheld or limited in any 
                        way from access by the public;
            ``(25) provide that a State will ensure that whenever a 
        juvenile, under 14 years of age, is adjudicated in a juvenile 
        proceeding to have engaged in conduct constituting an offense 
        described in paragraph (24)--
                    ``(A) a record is kept relating to the adjudication 
                that is--
                            ``(i) equivalent to the record that would 
                        be kept of an adult conviction for that 
                        offense;
                            ``(ii) retained for a period of time that 
                        is equal to the period of time records are kept 
                        for adult convictions;
                            ``(iii) made available to law enforcement 
                        agencies of any jurisdiction;
                            ``(iv) made available to officials of a 
                        school, school district, or postsecondary 
                        school where the individual who is the subject 
                        of the juvenile record seeks, intends, or is 
                        instructed to enroll, and that such officials 
                        are held liable to the same standards and 
                        penalties that law enforcement and juvenile 
                        justice system employees are held liable to, 
                        under Federal and State law for handling and 
                        disclosing such information; and
                            ``(v) made available, once the juvenile 
                        becomes an adult or is tried as an adult, to 
                        any court having criminal jurisdiction over 
                        such an individual for the purpose of allowing 
                        such court to consider the individual's prior 
                        juvenile history as a relevant factor in 
                        determining appropriate punishment for the 
                        individual at sentencing;
                    ``(B) the juvenile is fingerprinted and 
                photographed, and the fingerprints and photograph are 
                sent to the Federal Bureau of Investigation, 
                Identification Division for collection pursuant to 
                section 534 of title 28, United States Code; and
                    ``(C) the court in which the adjudication takes 
                place will transmit to the Federal Bureau of 
                Investigation, Identification Division for collection 
                pursuant to section 534 of title 28, United States 
                Code, the information concerning the adjudication, 
                including the name, date of adjudication, court, 
                offenses, and disposition, along with a prominent 
                notation that the matter concerns a juvenile 
                adjudication;
            ``(26) provide that whenever a juvenile, age 14 and older, 
        is adjudicated delinquent, as defined by Federal or State law 
        in a juvenile delinquency proceeding for conduct which if 
        committed by an adult would constitute a felony under Federal 
        or State law, the State will ensure that--
                    ``(A) a record is kept relating to the adjudication 
                that is--
                            ``(i) equivalent to the record that would 
                        be kept of an adult conviction for such an 
                        offense;
                            ``(ii) retained for a period of time that 
                        is equal to the period of time records are kept 
                        for adult convictions;
                            ``(iii) made available to law enforcement 
                        agencies of any jurisdiction;
                            ``(iv) made available to officials of a 
                        school, school district, or postsecondary 
                        school where the individual who is the subject 
                        of the juvenile record seeks, intends, or is 
                        instructed to enroll, and that such officials 
                        are held liable to the same standards and 
                        penalties that law enforcement and juvenile 
                        justice system employees are held liable to, 
                        under Federal and State law for handling and 
                        disclosing such information; and
                            ``(v) made available, once the juvenile 
                        becomes an adult or is tried as an adult, to 
                        any circuit court having criminal jurisdiction 
                        over such an individual for the purpose of 
                        allowing such court to consider the 
                        individual's prior juvenile history as a 
                        relevant factor in determining appropriate 
                        punishment for the individual at the sentencing 
                        hearing;
                    ``(B) the juvenile is fingerprinted and 
                photographed, and the fingerprints and photograph are 
                sent to the Federal Bureau of Investigation, 
                Identification Division and are otherwise made 
                available to the same extent that fingerprints and 
                photographs of adults are made available; and
                    ``(C) the court in which the adjudication takes 
                place transmits to the Federal Bureau of Investigation, 
                Identification Division, information concerning the 
                adjudication, including the name, date of adjudication, 
                court, offenses, and disposition, along with a 
                prominent notation that the matter concerns a juvenile 
                adjudication;
            ``(27) provide that the State will ensure that if any 
        juvenile has been adjudicated to be delinquent on 2 or more 
        separate occasions based on conduct that would be a felony if 
        committed by an adult the record of the second and all 
        subsequent adjudications is kept as described in paragraph (26) 
        and made available to the public to the same extent that a 
        record of an adult conviction is open to the public;'';
            (2) in subsection (c)(3), by striking ``the requirements of 
        subsection (a) (12)(A), (13), (14), or (23) in any fiscal year 
        beginning after January 1, 1993'' and inserting ``any 
        requirement of paragraph (12)(A), (13), (14), (23), (24), (25), 
        (26), or (27) of subsection (a) in any fiscal year beginning 
        after January 1, 1997''; and
            (3) by redesignating subsections (b), (c), and (d) as 
        subsections (c), (d), and (e); and
            (4) by adding the following new subsection:
    ``(b) Serious Habitual Offender Comprehensive Action Program.--
            ``(1) In general.--Serious habitual offender comprehensive 
        action programs referred to in subsection (a)(10)(D) (referred 
        to in this subsection as `programs') shall be multidisciplinary 
        interagency case management and information sharing systems, 
        meeting the requirements of this subsection, that enable the 
        juvenile and criminal justice system, schools, and social 
        service agencies to make more informed decisions regarding 
        early identification, control, supervision, and treatment of 
        juveniles who repeatedly commit serious delinquent or criminal 
        acts.
            ``(2) Multidisciplinary agencies.--Under such programs, 
        units of local government in a State shall establish a 
        multidisciplinary agency comprised of representatives from--
                    ``(A) law enforcement organizations;
                    ``(B) school districts;
                    ``(C) State's attorneys offices;
                    ``(D) court services;
                    ``(E) State and county children and family 
                services; and
                    ``(F) any additional organizations, groups, or 
                agencies deemed appropriate to accomplish the purposes 
                described in paragraph (1), including--
                            ``(i) juvenile detention centers;
                            ``(ii) mental and medical health agencies; 
                        and
                            ``(iii) the community at large.
            ``(3) Identification of serious habitual offenders.--Each 
        multidisciplinary agency established under paragraph (2) shall 
        adopt, by a majority of its members, criteria to identify 
        individuals who are serious habitual offenders as defined in 
        section 103(24).
            ``(4) Interagency information sharing agreement.--
                    ``(A) In general.--Each multidisciplinary agency 
                established under paragraph (2) shall adopt, by a 
                majority of its members, an interagency information 
                sharing agreement to be signed by the chief executive 
                officer of each organization and agency represented in 
                the multidisciplinary agency.
                    ``(B) Disclosure of information.--The interagency 
                information sharing agreement shall require that--
                            ``(i) all records pertaining to serious 
                        habitual offenders shall be kept confidential 
                        to the extent required by State law;
                            ``(ii) information in the records may be 
                        made available to other staff from member 
                        organizations and agencies as authorized by the 
                        multidisciplinary agency for the purposes of 
                        promoting case management, community 
                        supervision, conduct control, and tracking of 
                        the serious habitual offender for the 
                        application and coordination of appropriate 
                        services; and
                            ``(iii) access to the information in the 
                        records shall be limited to individuals who 
                        provide direct services to the serious habitual 
                        offender or who provide community conduct 
                        control and supervision to the serious habitual 
                        offender.''.

SEC. 4. JUVENILE ADJUDICATIONS CONSIDERED IN SENTENCING.

    Pursuant to section 994 of title 28, United States Code, the United 
States Sentencing Commission shall promulgate guidelines or amend 
existing guidelines to provide that offenses contained in the juvenile 
record of an adult defendant shall be considered as adult offenses in 
sentencing determinations if such juvenile offenses would have 
constituted a felony had they been committed by the defendant as an 
adult.

SEC. 5. ACCESS TO JUVENILE RECORDS.

    Section 5038(a) of title 18, United States Code, is amended--
            (1) in paragraph (5), by striking ``and'' at the end;
            (2) in paragraph (6), by striking the period and inserting 
        ``; and''; and
            (3) by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
            ``(7) inquiries from officials of a school, school 
        district, or any postsecondary school where the individual who 
        is the subject of the juvenile record seeks, intends, or is 
        instructed or ordered to enroll.''.

SEC. 6. INDIVIDUALS WITH DISABILITIES EDUCATION ACT.

    Paragraph (3) of section 615(e) of the Individuals with 
Disabilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. 1415(e)(3)) is amended--
            (1) by striking ``(A) Except as provided in subparagraph 
        (B)'' and inserting ``(A) Except as provided in subparagraphs 
        (B) and (C)''; and
            (2) by adding at the end the following new subparagraph:
                    ``(C) This paragraph shall not apply to a child 
                with a disability who commits a criminal act, on the 
                property of a school under the jurisdiction of the 
                State or local educational agency, which would be 
                considered a crime if committed by an adult and such 
                act subsequently becomes the basis for a juvenile 
                adjudication or criminal proceeding involving the 
                child.''.

SEC. 7. LIMITED DISCLOSURE OF FEDERAL BUREAU OF INVESTIGATION RECORDS.

    Section 534(e) of title 28, United States Code, is amended--
            (1) by redesignating paragraph (3) as paragraph (4); and
            (2) by inserting after paragraph (2) the following new 
        paragraph:
    ``(3) The Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, 
Identification Division shall provide, upon request, the information 
received under the provisions of paragraph (25) of section 223(a) of 
the Juvenile Justice Delinquency and Prevention Act of 1974, to 
officials of a school, school district, or postsecondary school where 
the individual who is the subject of such information seeks, intends, 
or is instructed or ordered to enroll.''.

SEC. 8. AMENDMENTS TO FEDERAL JUVENILE DELINQUENCY ACT.

    (a) Prosecution of Juveniles as Adults.--Section 5032 of title 18, 
United States Code, is amended by inserting before the first 
undesignated paragraph the following:
            ``Notwithstanding any other provision of law, juvenile 
        defendants 14 years of age or older shall be prosecuted as 
        adults, and this chapter shall not apply, if such juveniles are 
        charged with an offense that constitutes--
                    ``(A) murder or attempted murder;
                    ``(B) robbery while armed with a dangerous or 
                deadly weapon;
                    ``(C) battery or assault while armed with a 
                dangerous or deadly weapon;
                    ``(D) forcible rape;
                    ``(E) any serious drug offense which, if committed 
                by an adult, would be punishable under section 
                401(b)(1)(A) or 408 of the Controlled Substances Act 
                (21 U.S.C. 841(b)(1)(A), 848) or section 1010(b)(1)(A) 
                of the Controlled Substances Import and Export Act (21 
                U.S.C. 960(b)(1)(A));
                    ``(F) the third or subsequent occasion, unrelated 
                to any previous occasion, on which such juveniles 
                engage in conduct for which adults could be imprisoned 
                for a term exceeding 1 year, unless, on a case-by-case 
                basis--
                            ``(i) a court determines that trying such a 
                        juvenile as an adult is not in the interest of 
                        justice;
                            ``(ii) such court records its reasons for 
                        making such a determination in writing and 
                        makes such record available for inspection by 
                        the public at large; and
                            ``(iii) the court makes a record in writing 
                        of the disposition of the juvenile in the 
                        juvenile justice system available to the 
                        public, notwithstanding any other law requiring 
                        such information to be withheld or limited in 
                        any way from access by the public.''.
    (b) Amendments Concerning Records.--Section 5038 of title 18, 
United States Code, is amended--
            (1) by striking subsections (d) and (f);
            (2) by redesignating subsection (e) as subsection (d); and
            (3) by adding at the end the following new subsection:
    ``(e)(1) Whenever--
            ``(A) a juvenile under 14 years of age has been found 
        guilty of committing an act which if committed by an adult 
        would be an offense described in the first undesignated 
        paragraph of section 5032; or
            ``(B) a juvenile, age 14 and older, is adjudicated 
        delinquent in a juvenile delinquency proceeding for conduct 
        which if committed by an adult would constitute a felony,
the court shall comply with the requirements of paragraph (2).
    ``(2) The requirements referred to in paragraph (1) are that--
            ``(A) a record shall be kept relating to the adjudication 
        that is--
                    ``(i) equivalent to the record that would be kept 
                of an adult conviction for such an offense;
                    ``(ii) retained for a period of time that is equal 
                to the period of time records are kept for adult 
                convictions;
                    ``(iii) made available to law enforcement agencies 
                of any jurisdiction;
                    ``(iv) made available to officials of a school, 
                school district, or postsecondary school where the 
                individual who is the subject of the juvenile record 
                seeks, intends, or is instructed to enroll, and that 
                such officials are held liable to the same standards 
                and penalties that law enforcement and juvenile justice 
                system employees are held liable to, under Federal and 
                State law for handling and disclosing such information; 
                and
                    ``(v) made available, once the juvenile becomes an 
                adult or is tried as an adult, to any court having 
                criminal jurisdiction over such an individual for the 
                purpose of allowing such court to consider the 
                individual's prior juvenile history as a relevant 
                factor in determining appropriate punishment for the 
                individual at the sentencing hearing;
            ``(B) the juvenile shall be fingerprinted and photographed, 
        and the fingerprints and photograph shall be sent to the 
        Federal Bureau of Investigation, Identification Division and 
        shall otherwise be made available to the same extent that 
        fingerprints and photographs of adults are made available; and
            ``(C) the court in which the adjudication takes place shall 
        transmit to the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Identification 
        Division, information concerning the adjudication, including 
        the name, date of adjudication, court, offenses, and 
        disposition, along with a prominent notation that the matter 
        concerns a juvenile adjudication;
    ``(3) If a juvenile has been adjudicated to be delinquent on 2 or 
more separate occasions based on conduct that would be a felony if 
committed by an adult, the record of the second and all subsequent 
adjudications shall be kept and made available to the public to the 
same extent that a record of an adult conviction is open to the 
public.''.

SEC. 9. EFFECTIVE DATE; APPLICATION OF AMENDMENTS.

    (a) In General.--Except as provided in subsection (b), this Act and 
the amendments made by this Act shall take effect on the date of the 
enactment of this Act.
    (b) Exceptions.--The amendments made by subsections (b) and (c) of 
section 3 shall not apply with respect to a State before the first 
fiscal year that begins after the end of the first regular session of 
the State legislature following the date of the enactment of this Act.
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