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Official Code of Georgia Annotated

Title 15. COURTS · Chapter 11. JUVENILE CODE · Article 6. DELINQUENCY · Part 3. CUSTODY AND RELEASE OF CHILD

15-11-505. Use of detention assessments to determine if detention is warranted; serious delinquent acts.

Active

Current through: Including Acts of the 2025 Regular Session of the General Assembly.

  1. (a)

    If an alleged delinquent child is brought before the court, delivered to a secure residential facility or nonsecure residential facility or foster care facility designated by the court, or otherwise taken into custody, the juvenile court intake officer shall immediately administer a detention assessment and determine if such child should be detained, taking into account subsection (b) of this Code section. Such child shall be released unless it appears that his or her detention is warranted.#

  2. (b)
    1. (1)

      As used in this subsection, the term “serious delinquent act” means to commit, attempt to commit, conspiracy to commit, or solicitation of another to commit a delinquent act which if committed by an adult would constitute:#

      1. (A)

        Aggravated assault;#

      2. (B)

        Aggravated battery;#

      3. (C)

        Aggravated child molestation;#

      4. (D)

        Aggravated cruelty to animals;#

      5. (E)

        Aggravated sexual battery;#

      6. (F)

        Aggravated sodomy;#

      7. (G)

        Armed robbery involving a firearm;#

      8. (H)

        Arson in the first degree;#

      9. (I)

        Burglary in the first degree;#

      10. (J)

        Child molestation;#

      11. (K)

        Escape;#

      12. (L)

        Hijacking a motor vehicle in the first degree;#

      13. (M)

        Home invasion in the first or second degree;#

      14. (N)

        Involuntary manslaughter;#

      15. (O)

        Murder;#

      16. (P)

        Participating in criminal gang activity, as defined in subparagraphs (A) through (G) and (J) of paragraph (1) of Code Section 16-15-3, in violation of Code Section 16-15-4;#

      17. (Q)

        Rape;#

      18. (R)

        Robbery;#

      19. (S)

        Sexual exploitation of children;#

      20. (T)

        Smash and grab burglary;#

      21. (U)

        Trafficking of substances in violation of Code Section 16-13-31 or 16-13-31.1;#

      22. (V)

        Vehicular homicide;#

      23. (W)

        Voluntary manslaughter; or#

      24. (X)

        Battery if the victim is a healthcare worker or emergency health worker, as either term is defined in Code Section 16-5-19.#

    2. (2)

      When a child who is 13 years of age or younger is taken into custody as provided in subsection (a) of this Code section for any delinquent act other than a serious delinquent act, there shall be a presumption that such child should not be detained.#

Reading note: a word broken across two lines in the printed volume was joined by rule and could not be checked against the volume's own vocabulary. The official page linked below settles any doubt.

The notes below are printed with the section but are not enacted law (O.C.G.A. § 1-1-1(c)). They are shown apart from the text.

History

Code 1981, § 15-11-505, enacted by Ga. L. 2013, p. 294, § 1-1/HB 242; Ga. L. 2016, p. 443, § 1-7/SB 367; Ga. L. 2017, p. 417, § 2-1/SB 104; Ga. L. 2024, p. 560, § 2/HB 926, effective May 2, 2024.

Amendments

The 2024 amendment, effective May 2, 2024, deleted “or” from the end of subparagraph (b)(1)(V); substituted “; or” for a period at the end of subparagraph (b)(1)(W); and added subparagraph (b)(1)(X).

Editor's notes

Ga. L. 2024, p. 560, § 1/HB 926, not codified by the General Assembly, provides: “This Act shall be known and may be cited as the ‘Second Chance Workforce Act.’”

Read the official page (the state's PDF, opened at the page this text was read from).

Current through: Including Acts of the 2025 Regular Session of the General Assembly.

Text read from t15-ch1-11a-(v13)-pdf.pdf, Volume V13, 2020 edition, 2025 supplement, pages 212 to 214; merge action: replaced; file SHA-256 d86fd6e4449f.