15 ME Rev Stat § 3308 (2021)
2021 Maine Revised Statutes|TITLE 15: COURT PROCEDURE -- CRIMINAL|Part 6: MAINE JUVENILE CODE|Chapter 507: PETITION, ADJUDICATION AND DISPOSITION|15 §3308. Juvenile case records; inspection and sealing (WHOLE SECTION TEXT EFFECTIVE UNTIL 1/01/22)

 §3308. Juvenile case records; inspection and sealing (CONTAINS TEXT WITH VARYING EFFECTIVE DATES)(WHOLE SECTION TEXT EFFECTIVE UNTIL 1/01/22)1.  Inspection.   [PL 2019, c. 525, §17 (RP).] 1-A.  Confidentiality.  Juvenile case records are confidential and may not be disclosed, disseminated or inspected except as expressly authorized by this Part.   [PL 2019, c. 525, §17 (NEW).] 2.  Hearings open to public.  In the case of a hearing open to the general public under section 3307, the petition, the record of the hearing and the order of adjudication are open to public inspection, provided that any court subsequently sentencing the juvenile after the juvenile has become an adult may consider only murder and Class A, Class B and Class C offenses committed by the juvenile. The petition, the record of the hearing and the order of adjudication, regardless of whether the hearing is open to the general public under section 3307, are open to inspection by:   A. The victim;   [PL 2019, c. 525, §17 (NEW).]B. If the victim is a minor, a parent or parents, guardian or legal custodian of the victim; and   [PL 2019, c. 525, §17 (NEW).]C. If the victim cannot act on the victim's own behalf due to death, age, physical or mental disease or disorder or intellectual disability or autism or other reason, an immediate family member, guardian, legal custodian of the victim or a licensed professional investigator under Title 32, chapter 89.   [PL 2019, c. 525, §17 (NEW).][PL 2019, c. 525, §17 (AMD).] 3.  Dissemination of juvenile case records.  Juvenile case records must be open to inspection by and, upon request, be disseminated to the juvenile, the juvenile's parent or parents, guardian or legal custodian, the juvenile's attorney, the prosecuting attorney and to any agency to which legal custody of the juvenile was transferred as a result of adjudication. Juvenile case records may also be open to inspection by and, upon request, be disseminated to the Department of Health and Human Services prior to adjudication if commitment to the Department of Health and Human Services is a proposed disposition.   [PL 2019, c. 525, §17 (AMD).] 3-A.  Disclosure of juvenile's identity to victims.  Upon request, the identity of a juvenile subject to Juvenile Court proceedings must be disclosed by the Juvenile Court to:   A. The victim;   [PL 2019, c. 525, §17 (NEW).]B. If the victim is a minor, a parent or parents, guardian or legal custodian of the victim; or   [PL 2019, c. 525, §17 (NEW).]C. If the victim cannot act on the victim's own behalf due to death, age, physical or mental disease or disorder or intellectual disability or autism or other reason, an immediate family member, guardian, legal custodian of the victim or a licensed professional investigator under Title 32, chapter 89.   [PL 2019, c. 525, §17 (NEW).][PL 2019, c. 525, §17 (AMD).] 4.  Access to juvenile case records by other persons.  With the consent of the court and subject to reasonable limitations to protect the identity, privacy and safety of 3rd parties, including, but not limited to, victims and other accused or adjudicated juveniles, and the interests of justice, juvenile case records, excluding the names of the juvenile and the juvenile's parent or parents, guardian or legal custodian, the juvenile's attorney or any other parties, may be inspected by or disseminated to persons having a legitimate interest in the proceedings or by persons conducting pertinent research studies.   [PL 2019, c. 525, §17 (AMD).] 5.  Access to other records.  Except as otherwise authorized under section 3307 or this section, juvenile intelligence and investigative record information as defined in section 3308‑A, subsection 1, paragraph E, juvenile community corrections officers' records and all other reports of social and clinical studies contained in juvenile case records may not be open to inspection or disclosed or disseminated except with consent of the court or except to the extent that such records, reports and studies were made a part of the record of a hearing that was open to the general public under section 3307. The names and identifying information regarding any alleged victim and minors contained in the juvenile case records must be redacted prior to disclosure, dissemination or inspection.   The court may not order the disclosure, dissemination or inspection of juvenile case records unless the juvenile, the juvenile's attorney or, if the juvenile does not have an attorney, the juvenile's attorney of record and the prosecuting attorney are given notice of the request and an opportunity to be heard regarding the request. In deciding whether to allow the disclosure, dissemination or inspection of any portion of juvenile case records under this subsection, the court shall consider the purposes of this Part and the reasons for which the request is being made and may restrict the disclosure, dissemination or inspection of the juvenile case records in any manner the court determines necessary or appropriate. The names and identifying information regarding any alleged victims and minors contained in the juvenile case records must be redacted prior to disclosure, dissemination or inspection.   [PL 2019, c. 525, §17 (AMD).] 6.  Records to Secretary of State.  Whenever a juvenile has been adjudicated as having committed a juvenile crime involving the operation of a motor vehicle, the court shall transmit to the Secretary of State an abstract, duly certified, setting forth the name of the juvenile, the offense, the date of the offense, the date of the adjudicatory hearing and any other pertinent facts. These juvenile case records are admissible in evidence in hearings conducted by the Secretary of State or any of the Secretary of State's deputies and are open to public inspection.   Nothing in this Part may be construed to limit the authority of the Secretary of State, pursuant to Title 29‑A, to suspend a person's license or permit to operate a motor vehicle, right to operate a motor vehicle or right to apply for or obtain a license.   [PL 2019, c. 525, §17 (AMD).] 7.  Dissemination of information.  The following provisions apply to the dissemination of information contained in juvenile case records.   A. For purposes of this subsection the following terms have the following meanings.   (1) "Administration of criminal justice" has the same meaning as found in Title 16, section 703, subsection 1.   (2) "Administration of juvenile criminal justice" means activities related to the apprehension or summonsing, detention, conditional or unconditional release, informal adjustment, initial appearance, bind over, adjudication, disposition, custody and supervision or rehabilitation of accused juveniles or adjudicated juvenile criminal offenders. It includes the collection, storage and dissemination of juvenile case records.   (3) "Criminal justice agency" has the same meaning as found in Title 16, section 703, subsection 4.   [PL 2019, c. 525, §17 (AMD).]B. Nothing in this section precludes sharing of any information contained in juvenile case records by one criminal justice agency with another criminal justice agency for the administration of criminal justice or juvenile criminal justice or for criminal justice agency employment.   [PL 2019, c. 525, §17 (AMD).]B-1. Nothing in this section precludes dissemination of any information contained in juvenile case records if:   (1) The juvenile has been adjudicated as having committed a juvenile crime;   (2) The information is disseminated by and to persons who directly supervise or report on the health, behavior or progress of the juvenile, the superintendent of the juvenile's school and the superintendent's designees, criminal justice agencies or agencies that are or might become responsible for the health or welfare of the juvenile as a result of a court order or by agreement with the Department of Corrections or the Department of Health and Human Services; and   (3) The information is relevant to and disseminated for the purpose of creating or maintaining an individualized plan for the juvenile's rehabilitation, including reintegration into a school.   Any information received under this paragraph is confidential and may not be further disseminated, except as otherwise provided by law.   [PL 2019, c. 525, §17 (AMD).]C. Nothing in this section precludes dissemination of any information in the juvenile case records in the possession of the Department of Corrections if the person concerning whom the juvenile case records are sought, the person's legal guardian, if any, and, if the person is a minor, the person's parent or parents, guardian or legal custodian has given informed written consent to the dissemination of the juvenile case records.   [PL 2019, c. 525, §17 (AMD).]D. When a juvenile who is adjudicated of a juvenile crime that if committed by an adult would be gross sexual assault under Title 17‑A, section 253, subsection 1 is committed to a Department of Corrections juvenile correctional facility or placed on probation, the Department of Corrections shall provide, while the juvenile is committed or on probation, a copy of the juvenile's judgment and commitment to the Department of Health and Human Services, to all law enforcement agencies that have jurisdiction in those areas where the juvenile may reside, work or attend school and to the superintendent of any school system in which the juvenile attends school during the period of commitment or probation. The Department of Corrections shall provide a copy of the juvenile's judgment and commitment to all licensed and registered day-care facility operators located in the municipality where the juvenile resides, works or attends school during the period of commitment or probation. Upon request, the Department of Corrections shall also provide a copy of the juvenile's judgment and commitment to other entities that are involved in the care of children and are located in the municipality where the juvenile resides, works or attends school during the period of commitment or probation. The Department of Corrections may provide a copy of the juvenile's judgment and commitment to any other agency or person whom the Department of Corrections determines is appropriate to ensure public safety. Neither the failure of the Department of Corrections to perform the requirements of this paragraph nor compliance with this paragraph subjects the Department of Corrections or its employees to liability in a civil action.   [PL 1997, c. 752, §15 (AMD); PL 2003, c. 689, Pt. B, §6 (REV).]E. [PL 2019, c. 525, §17 (RP).] [PL 2019, c. 525, §17 (AMD).] 8.  Juvenile case records sealed.  This subsection governs the sealing of juvenile case records of a person adjudicated to have committed a juvenile crime.   A. A person adjudicated to have committed a juvenile crime may petition the court to seal from public inspection all juvenile case records pertaining to the juvenile crime and its disposition, and to any prior juvenile case records and their dispositions if:   (1) At least 3 years have passed since the person's discharge from the disposition ordered for that juvenile crime;   (2) Since the date of disposition, the person has not been adjudicated to have committed a juvenile crime and has not been convicted of committing a crime; and   (3) There are no current adjudicatory proceedings pending for a juvenile or other crime.   [PL 2019, c. 525, §17 (AMD).]B. The court may grant the petition if it finds that the requirements of paragraph A are satisfied, unless it finds that the general public's right to information substantially outweighs the juvenile's interest in privacy.   [PL 1989, c. 744, §5 (NEW).]C. Notwithstanding subsections 3, 3-A, 4 and 5, the court order sealing the juvenile case records permits only the following persons to have access to the sealed records:   (1) The courts and criminal justice agencies as provided by this section; and   (2) The person whose juvenile case records are sealed or that person's designee.   [PL 2019, c. 525, §17 (AMD).]D. If the petition is granted, the person may respond to inquiries from other than the courts and criminal justice agencies about that person's juvenile crimes, the juvenile case records of which have been sealed, as if the juvenile crimes had never occurred, without being subject to any sanctions.   [PL 2019, c. 525, §17 (AMD).][PL 2019, c. 525, §17 (AMD).] 8-A.  Transmission of information about a committed juvenile.  Information regarding a juvenile committed to the custody of the Department of Corrections or the custody of the Department of Health and Human Services must be provided as follows.   A. If a juvenile is committed to the custody of the Department of Corrections or the custody of the Department of Health and Human Services, the court shall transmit with the commitment order a copy of the petition, the order of adjudication, copies of any social studies, any clinical or educational reports and information pertinent to the care and treatment of the juvenile.   [PL 2019, c. 525, §17 (NEW).]B. The Department of Corrections or the Department of Health and Human Services shall provide the court with any information concerning a juvenile committed to either department's custody that the court at any time may request.   [PL 2019, c. 525, §17 (NEW).][PL 2019, c. 525, §17 (NEW).] 9.  Victims' Compensation Board.  Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, juvenile case records must be open to inspection by or be disseminated to the Victims' Compensation Board if a juvenile is alleged to have committed an offense upon which an application to the board is based.   [PL 2019, c. 525, §17 (AMD).] SECTION HISTORY PL 1977, c. 520, §1 (NEW). PL 1977, c. 664, §30 (AMD). PL 1979, c. 681, §§20,21 (AMD). PL 1981, c. 204, §2 (AMD). PL 1981, c. 679, §8 (AMD). PL 1983, c. 480, §B15 (AMD). PL 1985, c. 426 (AMD). PL 1985, c. 439, §14 (AMD). PL 1989, c. 744, §5 (AMD). PL 1991, c. 493, §20 (AMD). PL 1993, c. 354, §§6,7 (AMD). PL 1995, c. 65, §A47 (AMD). PL 1995, c. 65, §§A153,C15 (AFF). PL 1995, c. 690, §1 (AMD). PL 1997, c. 278, §§1,2 (AMD). PL 1997, c. 378, §13 (AMD). PL 1997, c. 421, §§A4-6 (AMD). PL 1997, c. 548, §A1 (AMD). PL 1997, c. 645, §10 (AMD). PL 1997, c. 752, §15 (AMD). PL 1999, c. 345, §1 (AMD). PL 1999, c. 624, §B18 (AMD). PL 2001, c. 452, §2 (AMD). PL 2003, c. 689, §B6 (REV). PL 2013, c. 267, Pt. B, §6 (AMD). PL 2019, c. 525, §17 (AMD). PL 2021, c. 365, §11 (RP). PL 2021, c. 365, §37 (AFF).