Opinion ID: 1711506
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: proceedings in juvenile court

Text: On December 7, 1994, a hearing was held in the juvenile court on the juveniles' motions for absolute discharge. Counsel for the juveniles argued the motion, but did not offer any evidence in support thereof. The State called two witnesses who testified generally about the crowded docket and lack of judicial resources, at that time, in the Douglas County Separate Juvenile Court. The testimony will be discussed more extensively in the analysis portion of this opinion. The gist of the juveniles' argument was that § 43-271 required the State to bring a juvenile to an adjudication hearing within 6 months of the filing of a petition. In addition, because § 43-271 specifically incorporated the speedy trial right found in the criminal rules of procedure, Neb.Rev.Stat. § 29-1207 (Reissue 1995), if the State failed in its statutory obligation to adjudicate a child within 6 months of the filing of the petition, absolute discharge was mandated. The State argued that juvenile adjudications are not criminal prosecutions; thus § 29-1207 should not be read so broadly as to compel the absolute discharge of these juveniles. Moreover, § 29-1207(4)(f) allows the speedy trial time period to toll if the court finds that there is good cause, and the current crowded docket in the juvenile court constitutes good cause. After hearing evidence and argument by counsel, the juvenile court granted the motions and discharged all 10 cases. The juvenile court found that § 43-271 required the State to bring all juveniles before the court for adjudication as soon as possible, but, in all cases, within a 6-month period after the petition is filed. If the 6-month period has passed between the filing of a petition and an adjudication hearing, § 43-271 refers the court to the rules of criminal procedure, and, absent sufficient cause for the delay, the juvenile court found that an absolute discharge from the petition is statutorily mandated.