NY State Senate Bill 2023-S1595

Senate Bill S1595

2023-2024 Legislative Session

Requires probation, investigation and diagnostic assessment of certain juvenile delinquents with discernible handicapping conditions prior to dispositional hearings

download bill text pdf

Current Bill Status - In Senate Committee Children And Families Committee

Introduced
- In Committee Assembly
- In Committee Senate
- On Floor Calendar Assembly
- On Floor Calendar Senate
- Passed Assembly
- Passed Senate
Delivered to Governor
Signed By Governor

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	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
Jan 03, 2024	referred to children and families
Jan 12, 2023	referred to children and families

2023-S1595 (ACTIVE) - Details

Current Committee:: Senate Children And Families
Law Section:: Family Court Act
Laws Affected:: Amd §§351.1 & 353.4, Fam Ct Act
Versions Introduced in Other Legislative Sessions:: 2009-2010: S7251
2011-2012: S2764
2013-2014: S3329
2015-2016: S2046
2017-2018: S3348
2019-2020: S2567
2021-2022: S3378

2023-S1595 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Provides that prior to a dispositional hearing the judge shall order a probation investigation and a diagnostic assessment of a juvenile delinquent whom the court reasonably finds, on the record, to have a demonstrable need for a remediation of a discernible handicapping condition; allows judges to refer custody through various state agencies for placement into programs under protocol and funding provisions currently in existence.

2023-S1595 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                 
BILL NUMBER: S1595

SPONSOR: BAILEY
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the family court act, in relation to probation, investi-
gation and diagnostic assessment of juvenile delinquents or any other
juvenile delinquent whom the court reasonably finds, on the record, to
have a demonstrable need for a remediation of a discernible handicapping
condition

 
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:

To enable the court system to identify youths with learning and develop-
mental disabilities at an early intercept point and to enhance the
courts, ability to deal with these Problems.

 
SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:

To amend section 351.1 of the Family Court Act, which pertains to Juve-
nile Delinquency (a juvenile delinquent being defined as an individual
between the ages of seven and fifteen who has been found guilty in Fami-

ly Court of an act that would constitute a crime if perpetrated by an
adult.)

A.) Adds to subsection I that the felony requirement before affecting an
action by assessment with the phrase: "or any other juvenile delinquent
whom the court reasonably finds, on the record, to have a demonstrable
need for a remediation of a discernible handicapping condition."

B.) Adds to sub-section 2, at the end, "The diagnostic assessment shall
be completed by an interdisciplinary team, consisting of, but not limit-
ed to, a psychologist, a social worker, a special educator, a physician,
and a law guardian and/or legal counsel."

C.) Family Court Act -- section 353.4, sub-section 1 changes the law to
"or the commissioner of mental health or the commissioner of mental
retardation and developmental disabilities consistent, with placement
provisions as outlined in chapter seven hundred fifty-seven of the laws
of nineteen hundred eighty-seven, chapter five hundred sixty-three of
the laws of nineteen hundred eighty and article eighty-one of the educa-
tion law, and/or any voluntary or not-for-profit agency licensed under
these provisions of law not inconsistent with the rules and regulations
governing the placement of clients." In sub-section 1, "the office for
people with" is added to describe the commissioner of developmental
disabilities.

D.) section 353.4, sub-section 4 -- changes the law to include "the
interdisciplinary team established in subdivision. three of section.
351.1 of this part."

E.) Where the division for youth is mentioned, the following language is
added, "office of children and family services."

 
JUSTIFICATION:

Amendments to section 351 of the Family Court Act would allow for the
development of an interdisciplinary team that will accept referrals from
family court judges prior to a dispositional hearing. These amendments
will allow judges to refer custody through various state agencies for
placement into programs under protocol and funding provisions currently
in state law. Under current law, family court judges are not required to
have assessments undertaken for a youth suspected of manifesting devel-
opmental and learning disabilities, mental illness and/or mental retar-
dation. Moreover, probation departments currently lack the expertise to
conduct referrals or to interpret information gathered for a family
court judge.

Recent studies have shown that very large numbers of the youths peti-
tioned into family court (up to 7095) have some type of mental or devel-
opmental handicap. Implementation of early interception programs in
areas where they can be used to assist these individuals would help stop
the steady stream of young people that are slipping through the cracks
in the system.

This bill seeks to emphasize the developing role and the capacity of the
probation system in linking treatment, habilitation, rehabilitation, and
education programs to youth at the dispositional hearing stage when
appropriate. Numerous studies indicate that the current process of plac-
ing these youths is neither cost-effective nor programmatically effec-
tive, since many youths are institutionalized within the juvenile
justice system without the opportunity to receive employable skills or
appropriate services. The interdisciplinary team would provide the
probation system with the essential tools to reasonably determine the
needs of youth for mental health, mental retardation, and developmental
disabilities and other services before they become caught up in the
juvenile justice system.

The cost of the interdisciplinary team would dramatically lessen the
costs to the state for inappropriate placements and in many cases the
need for institutionalization. Funding provisions for such placements
are outlined in Chapter 563 of the laws of 1980.

 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

2019-20: S.2567 - Referred to Children and Families

2021-22: S.3378 - Referred to Children and Families

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS FOR STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS:

Undetermined.

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect on the first of November next succeeding the
date on which it shall have become a law.

2023-S1595 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   1595
 
                        2023-2024 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                             January 12, 2023
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sen.  BAILEY -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee on Children and Families
 
 AN ACT to amend the family court act, in relation to probation, investi-
   gation and diagnostic assessment of juvenile delinquents or any  other
   juvenile delinquent whom the court reasonably finds, on the record, to
   have  a demonstrable need for a remediation of a discernible handicap-
   ping condition
 
   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section  1. Subdivision 1 of section 351.1 of the family court act, as
 amended by chapter 398 of the laws  of  1983,  is  amended  to  read  as
 follows:
   1.  Following a determination that a respondent has committed a desig-
 nated felony act OR ANY OTHER JUVENILE DELINQUENT WHOM THE COURT REASON-
 ABLY FINDS, ON THE RECORD, TO HAVE A DEMONSTRABLE NEED FOR A REMEDIATION
 OF A DISCERNIBLE HANDICAPPING CONDITION and prior to  the  dispositional
 hearing,  the judge shall order a probation investigation and a diagnos-
 tic assessment. For the purposes of this article, the probation investi-
 gation shall include, but not be limited to, the history of the juvenile
 including previous conduct, the family situation, any  previous  psycho-
 logical  and  psychiatric  reports,  school  adjustment, previous social
 assistance provided by voluntary or public agencies and the response  of
 the  juvenile  to such assistance. For the purposes of this article, the
 diagnostic assessment shall include, but not be limited  to,  psycholog-
 ical  tests  and psychiatric interviews to determine mental capacity and
 achievement, emotional  stability  and  mental  disabilities.  It  shall
 include  a  clinical assessment of the situational factors that may have
 contributed to the act or acts. When feasible, expert opinion  shall  be
 rendered  as to the risk presented by the juvenile to others or himself,
 with a recommendation as to the need for a restrictive placement.

  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD04445-01-3
 S. 1595                             2

 
   § 2. Subdivision 3 of section 351.1 of the family court act, as  added
 by chapter 920 of the laws of 1982, is amended to read as follows:
   3. A child shall not be placed in accord with section 353.3 unless the
 court  has  ordered a probation investigation prior to the dispositional
 hearing; a child shall not be placed in accord with section 353.4 unless
 the court has ordered a diagnostic assessment prior to such hearing. THE
 DIAGNOSTIC ASSESSMENT SHALL BE COMPLETED BY  AN  INTERDISCIPLINARY  TEAM
 CONSISTING  OF,  BUT  NOT LIMITED TO, A PSYCHOLOGIST, A SOCIAL WORKER, A
 SPECIAL EDUCATOR, A PHYSICIAN, AND A LAW GUARDIAN AND/OR LEGAL COUNSEL.
   § 3. Subdivisions 1 and 4 of section 353.4 of the  family  court  act,
 subdivision  1 as amended by chapter 37 of the laws of 2016 and subdivi-
 sion 4 as added by chapter 920 of the laws of 1982, are amended to  read
 as follows:
   1. If at the conclusion of the dispositional hearing and in accordance
 with section 352.2 of this act the court finds that the respondent has a
 mental  illness, or intellectual or developmental disability, as defined
 in section 1.03 of the mental hygiene law, which is likely to result  in
 serious  harm  to  himself  or herself or others, the court may issue an
 order placing such respondent with the office  of  children  and  family
 services  or,  with  the consent of the local commissioner, with a local
 commissioner of social services, OR THE COMMISSIONER OF MENTAL HEALTH OR
 THE COMMISSIONER OF DEVELOPMENTAL DISABILITIES CONSISTENT WITH PLACEMENT
 PROVISIONS AS OUTLINED IN CHAPTER SEVEN HUNDRED FIFTY-SEVEN OF THE  LAWS
 OF  NINETEEN  HUNDRED SEVENTY-SEVEN, CHAPTER FIVE HUNDRED SIXTY-THREE OF
 THE LAWS OF NINETEEN HUNDRED EIGHTY AND ARTICLE EIGHTY-ONE OF THE EDUCA-
 TION LAW, AND/OR ANY VOLUNTARY OR NOT-FOR-PROFIT AGENCY  LICENSED  UNDER
 THESE  PROVISIONS OF LAW NOT INCONSISTENT WITH THE RULES AND REGULATIONS
 GOVERNING THE PLACEMENT OF CLIENTS. Any  such  order  shall  direct  the
 temporary  transfer  for  admission  of the respondent to the custody of
 either the commissioner of mental health or the commissioner of develop-
 mental disabilities who shall arrange the admission of the respondent to
 the appropriate facility of the department of mental hygiene. The direc-
 tor of a hospital operated by the office of mental health  may,  subject
 to  the provisions of section 9.51 of the mental hygiene law, transfer a
 person admitted to the hospital pursuant to this subdivision to a  resi-
 dential  treatment  facility  for  children  and  youth, as that term is
 defined in section 1.03 of the mental hygiene law, if care and treatment
 in such a facility would  more  appropriately  meet  the  needs  of  the
 respondent.  Persons  temporarily transferred to such custody under this
 provision may be retained for care and treatment for a period of  up  to
 one  year  and  whenever  appropriate  shall  be transferred back to the
 office of children and family services pursuant  to  the  provisions  of
 section  five  hundred  nine of the executive law or transferred back to
 the local commissioner of social services. Within thirty  days  of  such
 transfer  back,  application shall be made by the office of children and
 family services or the local commissioner  of  social  services  to  the
 placing  court  to  conduct a further dispositional hearing at which the
 court may make any order authorized under section  352.2  of  this  act,
 except  that  the  period of any further order of disposition shall take
 into account the period of placement hereunder. Likelihood to result  in
 serious harm shall mean (a) substantial risk of physical harm to himself
 or  herself  as  manifested by threats or attempts at suicide or serious
 bodily harm or other conduct demonstrating he or  she  is  dangerous  to
 himself  or  herself or (b) a substantial risk of physical harm to other
 persons as manifested by homicidal or other violent  behavior  by  which
 others are placed in reasonable fear of serious bodily harm.
 S. 1595                             3
 
   4.  No  order of disposition placing the respondent in accordance with
 this section shall be entered except upon clear and convincing  evidence
 which  shall  include  the  testimony  of  [two  examining physicians as
 provided in section two hundred fifty-one]  THE  INTERDISCIPLINARY  TEAM
 ESTABLISHED IN SUBDIVISION THREE OF SECTION 351.1 OF THIS PART.
   § 4. This act shall take effect on the first of November next succeed-
 ing the date on which it shall have become a law.

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