An Act to Authorize Judicial Disposition of a Juvenile Adjudicated
Maine Legislature, Session 132, LD 0535
Committee: Judiciary
Sponsors: FREDETTE
Amends: 15 MRSA §3315, 15 MRSA §3316, 15 MRSA §3317, 15 MRSA §3319

Legislative Document
No. 535
H.P. 354
House of Representatives, February 11, 2025
An Act to Authorize Judicial Disposition of a Juvenile Adjudicated 
of Murder or a Class A Crime to a Term of Commitment Extending 
Beyond the Juvenile's 21st Birthday
Reference to the Committee on Judiciary suggested and ordered printed.
ROBERT B. HUNT
Clerk
Presented by Representative FREDETTE of Newport.
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows:
Sec. 1.  15 MRSA §3315, sub-§3, ¶A, as enacted by PL 2021, c. 326, §12, is 
amended to read:
A.  A juvenile who has not attained 21 years of age must be represented by counsel at 
this review.
Sec. 2.  15 MRSA §3316, sub-§2-A is enacted to read:
2-A.  Determinate disposition extending beyond 21st birthday.  Notwithstanding 
subsection 2, the court may commit a juvenile to a Department of Corrections juvenile 
correctional facility pursuant to section 3314, subsection 1, paragraph F for a period that 
may extend beyond the juvenile's 21st birthday as long as the period does not extend 
beyond the maximum allowed sentence of imprisonment for an adult convicted of similar 
conduct if the conduct subject to the adjudication is conduct that, if committed by an adult, 
would be defined as murder or a Class A crime by the Maine Criminal Code, or by any 
other criminal statute outside that code. In deciding whether to commit a juvenile for a 
period beyond the juvenile's 21st birthday, the court shall consider the following factors:
A.  The severity and circumstances of the offense, including any aggravating factors, 
use of weapons, degree of harm caused and vulnerability of the victim;
B.  The juvenile's age at the time of the offense and evidence of maturity, impulse 
control and mental development;
C.  Evidence of the juvenile's capacity for reform, including past behavior, educational 
achievements, participation in counseling or other rehabilitative programs and 
willingness to change;
D.  The juvenile's past criminal record, if any, and the pattern or escalation of criminal 
behavior;
E.  Statements or evidence regarding the harm or trauma experienced by the victims 
and the community's interest in justice and safety; and
F.  Findings from psychological assessments, particularly those evaluating the 
juvenile's risk of reoffending and the potential for rehabilitation.
Sec. 3.  15 MRSA §3317, as amended by PL 2021, c. 326, §14, is further amended 
to read:
§3317.  Disposition after return to Juvenile Court
In instances of commitment of a juvenile to the Department of Health and Human 
Services or a Department of Corrections juvenile correctional facility or when the juvenile 
is under a specified period of probation, the Commissioner of Health and Human Services 
or the commissioner's designee or the Commissioner of Corrections or the commissioner's 
designee, or the juvenile following the disposition may for good cause petition the Juvenile 
Court having original jurisdiction in the case for a judicial review of the disposition, 
including extension of the period of commitment or period of probation.  For a petition 
initiated by the juvenile, the Department of Health and Human Services or the Department 
of Corrections shall provide information including, but not limited to, the information in 
reports required for periodic review pursuant to section 3315.  In all cases in which the 
juvenile is returned to a Juvenile Court, the Juvenile Court may make any of the 
dispositions otherwise provided in section 3314; section 3316, subsection 2-A; and Title 
34‑A, section 3805, subsection 2.  When reviewing a commitment to the Department of 
Health and Human Services, the court shall consider efforts made by the Department of 
Corrections and the Department of Health and Human Services to reunify the juvenile with 
the juvenile's parents or custodians, shall make a finding regarding those efforts and shall 
return custody of the juvenile to a parent or legal custodian if the return of the juvenile is 
not contrary to the welfare of the juvenile.  A petition for judicial review of a disposition 
committing the juvenile to the Department of Health and Human Services must be served 
on the parents at least 7 days prior to the hearing.  Absent extraordinary circumstances, the 
juvenile may file a petition no more than once every 180 days.  A juvenile who has not 
attained 21 years of age must be represented by counsel at this review.
Sec. 4.  15 MRSA §3319, as amended by PL 2005, c. 507, §13, is further amended 
to read:
§3319.  Designation of facility
Immediately after the court orders detention or confinement in or commitment to a 
juvenile facility, the court shall notify the Commissioner of Corrections or the 
commissioner's designee and shall inquire as to the juvenile facility to which the juvenile 
will be transported.  The commissioner has complete discretion to make this determination.  
The commissioner or the commissioner's designee shall immediately inform the court of 
the location of the juvenile facility to which the juvenile will be transported.  If the juvenile 
has been committed to a Department of Corrections juvenile correctional facility beyond 
the juvenile's 21st birthday under section 3316, subsection 2-A, the commissioner shall 
direct the transfer of the juvenile to an adult correctional facility.
SUMMARY
This bill allows a court to impose a sentence that includes commitment beyond 21 years 
of age for a juvenile adjudicated of murder or a Class A crime. The bill requires the court 
to weigh a number of factors in determining whether to sentence a juvenile beyond the 
juvenile's 21st birthday, including the severity and the circumstances of the offense, the age 
and maturity of the juvenile, the rehabilitation potential of the juvenile, prior criminal 
history, the impact on the victim and the victim's community and findings from 
psychological assessments. The bill requires that a juvenile be represented by counsel at 
periodic reviews regardless of age. The bill also directs the Commissioner of Corrections 
to transfer the juvenile to an adult correctional facility at 21 years of age.