2023 Tennessee Code › Title 37 - JUVENILES (§§ 37-1-NEW — 37-11-103) › Chapter 1 - JUVENILE COURTS AND PROCEEDINGS (§§ 37-1-NEW — 37-1-910) › Part 1 - GENERAL PROVISIONS (§§ 37-1-NEW — 37-1-189) › Section 37-1-NEW - [Newly enacted section not yet numbered] [Effective 1/1/2025]

(a)
(1)
If a child is alleged to have committed an offense or engaged in conduct that is designated a crime or public offense under the laws of this state, and the child meets the criteria listed in subdivision (a)(2), then the court, before a hearing on the merits of the petition, shall conduct a hearing to determine whether the child should be transferred to a criminal court of competent jurisdiction to be tried as an adult.
(2)
Subdivision (a)(1) applies if the child was sixteen (16) years of age or older at the time of the alleged conduct and charged with the offense of:
(A)
First degree murder;
(B)
Second degree murder; or
(C)
Attempted first or second degree murder.
(3)
A hearing pursuant to subdivision (a)(1) must be held in conformity with §§ 37-1-124, 37-1-126, and 37-1-127.
(4)
The court shall provide reasonable notice in writing of the time, place, and purpose of the hearing to the child and the child's parents, guardian, or other custodian at least fourteen (14) days prior to the hearing.
(b)
(1)
Except as provided in subdivision (b)(2), the child must be transferred and tried as an adult in criminal court if the juvenile court finds probable cause to believe that:
(A)
The child committed the delinquent act as alleged; and
(B)
The child is not committable to an institution for the developmentally disabled or mentally ill.
(2)
The district attorney general shall not seek, nor shall any child tried as an adult in criminal court receive, a sentence of death or mandatory imprisonment for life without the possibility of parole.
(3)
If the juvenile court determines that the child must be transferred to criminal court to be tried as an adult, then the court shall enter a written order detailing the court's findings of fact and conclusions of law. Following entry of the order, the child is subject to indictment, presentation, or information for the offense charged.
(4)
If the juvenile court determines that the child must not be transferred to criminal court to be tried as an adult, then the court shall enter a written order detailing the court's findings of fact and conclusions of law.
(5)
Pursuant to § 37-1-159, the criminal court, or court having criminal jurisdiction, may review the juvenile court's determination.
(c)
Section 37-1-134(c)-(h) apply to a juvenile transferred to criminal court under this section.
(d)
When a child transferred under this section is detained, the juvenile court shall order confinement in a local juvenile detention facility or a juvenile detention facility with which it contracts, except that the juvenile court may order confinement in an adult detention facility separate and removed from adult detainees if the sheriff affirms to the court that the adult detention facility has the ability to comply with the requirements of § 37-1-116, and that the population of the adult detention facility does not exceed the capacity of the facility. The court having adult criminal jurisdiction may thereafter order detention in an adult detention facility separate and removed from adult detainees; provided, however, that during the period while such child is detained separately from adult detainees, the child must otherwise abide by the same regulations and policies governing conditions of imprisonment that apply to adult detainees who are charged with similar offenses. Similar regulations and policies governing educational opportunities for adults must be implemented for a child so detained, but such regulations and policies do not affect or alter the manner in which a local education agency is required to provide educational services to a child under the federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, compiled in
20 U.S.C. § 1471
et seq.
(e)
A person who is transferred under this section and who was sixteen (16) years of age or older at the time of the offense and is subsequently convicted and committed must be housed in a juvenile correctional facility unless the committing court orders commitment to an adult facility. A person committed to an adult facility under this section must be housed separate and removed from adult inmates. In exercising the commissioner's discretion under § 41-1-403 to determine the institutional location of any such person, the commissioner of correction shall take into consideration the proximity of the institution to the person's home. However, during any period while the person is confined separately from adult inmates within a regional facility, the person shall otherwise abide by the same regulations and policies governing conditions of imprisonment that apply to adult inmates who are confined for similar offenses. Similar regulations and policies governing educational opportunities for adults must be implemented for a child so detained, but the regulations and policies must not affect or alter the manner in which a local education agency is required to provide educational services to a child under the federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (
20 U.S.C. § 1471
et seq.).
Added by 2024 Tenn. Acts, ch. 1007,s 10, eff. 1/1/2025.