An Act To
Maine Legislature, Session 123, LD 0521
Committee Amendment CA_A_H73 (House)
Amends: 17-A MRSA §303

COMMITTEE AMENDMENT "A " 
to H.P. 399, L.D. 521, Bill, "An Act To 
Amend the Laws Relating to Juveniles" 
Amend the bill by striking out all of sections 7 and 8 and inserting the following: 
'Sec. 7. 17-A MRSA §303, as amended by PL 1981, c. 669, §§1 to 3, is further 
amended to read: 
§303. Criminal restraint by parent 
1. 
A person is guilty of criminal restraint by ~ parent if, being the parent of a child 
Hnder the age of 16, and knowing fie the person has no legal right to do so, fie the person 
takes, retains or entices the child: 
A. 
Takes, retains or entiees the ehild Who has not in fact attained 16 years of age, 
from the custody of his the child's other parent, guardian or other lawful custodian 
with the intent to remove the child from the State or to secrete him the child and hold 
him the child in a place where fie the child is not likely to be foundr-er. Violation of 
this paragraph is a Class C crime; 
B. 
Takes, retains or entiees the ehild Who resides in another state and who has not 
in fact attained 16 years of age, from the custody of his the child's other parent, 
guardian or other lawful custodian, whose custodial authority was established by a 
court of this State, in the state in whieh the ehild is residing 'Nith his legal eHstodian 
with the intent to remove the child from that state or to secrete him the child and hold 
him the child in a place where fie the child is not likely to be found. Violation of this 
paragraph is a Class C crime; or 
C. 
Who is either 16 or 17 years of age, from the custody of the Department of 
Corrections or the Department of Health and Human Services with the intent to 
remove the child from the State or to secrete the child and hold the child in a place 
where the child is not likely to be found. Violation of this paragraph is a Class D 
crime. 
COMMITTEE AMENDMENT 
"'0 
~ 
COMMITTEE AMENDMENT "A " 
to H.P. 399, L.D. 521 
2. 
Consent by the ~ 
child taken, enticed or retained is not a defense under this 
section. 
3. 
A law enforcement officer shall may not be held liable for taking physical 
custody of a child whom he who the officer reasonably believes has been taken, retained 
or enticed in violation of this section and for delivering the child to a person whom he 
who the officer reasonably believes is the child's lawful custodian or to any other suitable 
person. 
For purposes of this subsection, "reasonable belief a child has been taken, retained or 
enticed in violation of this section" includes, but is not limited to, a determination by a 
law enforcement officer, based on his the officer's review of the terms of a certified copy 
of the most recent court decree granting custody of the child, that the parent who is 
exercising control over the child is not the person authorized to have custody under terms 
ofthe decree. 
4. 
A law enforcement officer may arrest without a warrant any person who fie the 
officer has probable cause to believe has violated or is violating this section. 
S. 
Criminal restraint by parent is a Class C erime.' 
SUMMARY 
This amendment strikes section 7 from the bill, which raised constitutional issues, as 
it would have required that a juvenile who receives a suspended order of commitment to a 
juvenile facility and commits a probation violation shortly before the end of the 
commitment period be required to receive a commitment of at least one year. The 
amendment also amends section 8 of the bill by redrafting the crime of criminal restraint 
by a parent to add a new Class D form of the crime that addresses criminal restraint by a 
noncustodial parent of a child either 16 or 17 years of age whose lawful custodian is the 
Department of Corrections or the Department of Health and Human Services. 
The 
amendment also makes additional technical drafting changes to the Maine Revised 
Statutes, Title 17-A, section 303. 
FISCAL NOTE REQU1Rl"L 
(See Attached) 
COMMITTEE AMENDMENT 
Approved: 03/24/07 ib/ac:.. 
LD521 
LR640(02) 
An Act To Amend the Laws Relating to Juveniles 
Fiscal Note for Bill as Amended by Committee Amendment "A" 
Committee: Criminal Justice and Public Safety 
Fiscal Note Required: Yes 
Fiscal Note 
Minor cost increase - General Fund 
Minor revenue increase - General Fund 
Correctional and Judicial Impact Statements 
Establishes new Class D crimes. 
The collection of additional fines may also increase General Fund revenue by minor amounts. 
LR0640(02) - Fiscal Note - Page 1 of 1