Court Opinion

ID: 9720680
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-26 08:39:14.266947+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T18:24:20.501463
License: Public Domain

FRANSON, J., Concurring and Dissenting.
I concur in the holding that appellant’s arrest and search was lawful. I dissent, however, from the holding that appellant was properly committed to the Youth Authority.
Section 502 of the Welfare and Institutions Code provides: “The purpose of this chapter is to secure for each minor under the jurisdiction of the juvenile court such care and guidance, preferably in his own home, as will serve the spiritual, emotional, mental, and physical welfare of the minor, and the best interests of the state; to- preserve and strengthen the minor’s family ties whenever possible, removing him frotii the custody of his parents only when his welfare or safety and protection of the public cannot be adequately safeguarded without removal; and *267when the minor is removed from his own family, to secure for him custody, care, and discipline as nearly as possible equivalent to that which should have been given by his parents. This chapter shall be liberally construed to carry out these purposes.” (Italics added.)
Juvenile commitment proceedings are designed for the purposes of rehabilitation and treatment of the minor, and not for punishment. (In re Aline D. (1975) 14 Cal.3d 557, 567 [121 Cal.Rptr. 816, 536 P.2d 65]; In re J. L. P. (1972) 25 Cal.App.3d 86, 89 [100 Cal.Rptr. 601].)
Section 731 of the Welfare and Institutions Code provides that, “When a minor is adjudged a ward of the court on the ground that he is a person described by Section 602, the court may order any of the types of treatment referred to in Sections 727 and 730, [1] and as an additional alternative may commit the minor to the Youth Authority.”
In In re Aline D., supra, 14 Cal.3d 557, our Supreme Court, by strong and persuasive dicta, noted that sections 727, 730 and 731 establish a progressive commitment procedure. The court stated:
“.. . ‘The statutory scheme ... as now embodied in sections 730 et seq. of the Welfare and Institutions Code, contemplates a progressively restrictive and punitive series of disposition orders in cases such as that now before us—namely, home placement under supervision, foster home placement, placement in a local treatment facility and, as a last resort, Youth Authority placement.’
“As is evident from the applicable statutes, ‘Commitments to the California Youth Authority are madé only in the most serious cases and only after all else has failed.’ (Thompson, Cal. Juvenile Court Deskbook, § 9.15, p. 123.) This concept is well established and has been expressed by the CYA itself. In light of the general purposes of juvenile commitments expressed in Welfare and Institutions Code section 502,..., ‘. . . commitment to the Youth Authority is generally viewed as the final treatment resource available to the juvenile court and which least meets the description in the above provision [§ 502], Within the Youth Authority system, there is gathered from throughout the State the most severely delinquent youths which have exhausted local programs.’ *268(Italics added; California Youth Authority, Criteria and Procedure for Referral of Juvenile Court Cases to the Youth Authority (1971) p. 1.)....
“. . . The ‘criteria’ lists . . . several ‘inappropriate cases’ for commitment, including . . .. (2) unsophisticated, mildly delinquent youths, ‘for whom commingling with serious delinquents who make up the bulk of the Youth Authority population might result in a negative learning experience and serious loss of self-esteem’; . . .” (14 Cal.3d at pp. 564-565.)
In re Aline D., supra, clearly suggests that less severe treatment alternatives should be attempted by the juvenile court before committing a minor to the Youth Authority, particularly in a case where the minor has not exhibited serious aggressive or assaultive tendencies and has not appeared before in the juvenile court. In keeping with the spirit of the law, if the juvenile court does not deem it appropriate to utilize the progressive treatment approach suggested in Aline D., I believe that the record at the very least should contain some evidence to support an implied finding that the minor would not successfully benefit from placement in a local facility.
The majority’s description of appellant as a “calculating sophisticated youth” and a “big drug dealer” does not aid in resolving the legal issue before us. Such rhetoric merely reflects the majority’s prejudice against the clear mandate of the juvenile court law that a young person should be committed to the Youth Authority.only as a last resort. (Welf. & Inst. Code, § 502; In re Aline D., supra, 14 Cal.3d 557; see also In re Maria A. (1975) 52 Cal.App.3d 901, 903 [125 Cal.Rptr. 382].)
In the present case appellant had a minimal history of criminal offenses (petty theft and possession and use of marijuana), none of which had been deemed serious enough to bring him before the juvenile court. He twice had been placed on informal probation “at the house level” and had completed the probation periods without violation. The vehicle violations, marijuana possession and burglary did not involve violence or assaultive conduct on his part. Appellant appeared cooperative at both the jurisdictional and dispositional hearings; he admitted the burglary and the vehicle violations, and he readily admitted that the marijuana found on his person and in the trunk of his car belonged to him. He denied, however, any knowledge of the codeine, explaining that he had just regained possession of his car two days before and did not know the *269codeine was in the car. He said the scales found in the trunk belonged to a friend.
The probation officer had conducted a thorough investigation and had recommended that appellant be placed in a local forestry camp (with 24-hour supervision) and upon successful completion of the camp program that he be released to the custody of his parents upon specified terms of probation. I find nothing in the record to suggest that appellant would not have benefited by placement in the camp to the same extent as he would have benefited by placement at the Youth Authority. Moreover, the record does not disclose any reason or finding of the court as to why it believed that appellant would not have been successfully rehabilitated by placement in the forestry camp or some other local facility.
The record shows that the judge was concerned about the fact that the burglary reportedly involved the theft of some $1,200 worth of liquor from a private residence, that appellant probably had been dealing in marijuana at his high school, and that he was driving a Cadillac when his father was unemployed. All of these are matters of concern, yet standing alone they do not justify a Youth Authority commitment. (In re William M. (1970) 3 Cal.3d 16, 30 [89 Cal.Rptr. 33, 473 P.2d 737]; In re J. L. P. supra, 25 Cal.App.3d 86, 89.) Having in mind that juvenile commitment proceedings are not to punish but to rehabilitate, there must be some showing apart from the seriousness of the crimes of which the defendant is convicted that the Youth Authority rather than a local facility would better serve the rehabilitative needs of the minor. For example, in the present case, if the judge had believed that appellant would benefit from certain vocational training or academic programs available at the Youth Authority which were not available locally, he should have judicially noted this fact for the record. Absent such evidence, no meaningful appellate review can be made of the judge’s exercise of discretion.
I recognize that historically a Youth Authority commitment has been a matter for the sound discretion of the juvenile court. For example, in In re Dale S. (1970) 10 Cal.App.3d 952, 957 [89 Cal.Rptr. 499], in upholding a Youth Authority commitment, the court noted that the minor had been adjudged by the juvenile court to have come under the provisions of sections 601 or 602 on three occasions; he had run away from home, possessed and sold marijuana; stolen a motorcycle, used LSD, and constantly violated the terms of his probation, and habitually refused to obey all authority. Similarly, in In re Clarence B. (1974) 37 Cal.App.3d *270676, 683 [112 Cal.Rptr. 474], it was held not to be an abuse of discretion for a minor to be committed to the Youth Authority when he was found to have committed rape and oral copulation; had a history of shoplifting, possession of marijuana and other offenses; had been before the juvenile court several times and could not adjust to community or home placements, and had not been able to make a minimal adjustment in a forestry camp and other local placement programs.
The traditional standard for the exercise of judicial discretion in committing a minor to the Youth Authority has been the minor’s “suitability” for treatment in the Youth Authority. (People v. Hutson (1963) 221 Cal.App.2d 751, 754-755 [34 Cal.Rptr. 790].) However, Welfare and Institutions Code section 734 provides: “No ward of the juvenile court shall be committed to the Youth Authority unless the judge of the court is fully satisfied that the mental and physical condition and qualifications of the ward are such as to render it probable that he will be benefited by the reformatory educational discipline or other treatment provided by the Youth Authority.” (Italics added.)
I infer from the emphasized language a legislative intent that before a minor is committed to the. Youth Authority the juvenile court must consider and reject a local placement and that its decision must be supported by substantial evidence from which it may be inferred that the minor could better be treated at the Youth Authority. To hold otherwise is to vest an unlimited discretion in the juvenile court to send a minor to the Youth Authority.
Moreover, the test for determining an abuse of discretion in adult sentencing and probation proceedings is not applicable to proceedings under the Juvenile Court Law. “[The Juvenile. Court Law] ‘contemplates a progressively restrictive and punitive series of disposition orders . . . namely, home placement under supervision, foster home placement, placement in a local treatment facility and, as a last resort, Youth Authority placement.” (In re Aline D., supra, 14 Cal.3d at p. 564; In re Arthur N. (1976) 16 Cal.3d 226 [127 Cal.Rptr. 641, 545 P.2d 1345].) I find it ironic that my colleagues in the majority have recently expressed their approval of the progressive punishment concept of In re Aline D., supra. In In re Maria A. (1975) 52 Cal.App.3d 901 at page 903 [125 Cal.Rptr. 382] it is stated, “If Maria A. had been under the age of 18 years she could not have been sent to the Youth Authority without a specific finding under the provisions of section 734 . .. that no suitable alternative exists. The case of In re Aline D. . . . contains a full exposition as to the *271wisdom of using the Youth Authority only as a last resort.” (Italics added; 52 Cal.App.3d 901—opinion by Thompson, J., concurred in by Brown, P. J.)
I would not require the juvenile court to choose a dispositional alternative other than Youth Authority for an offender simply because he is appearing before the juvenile court for the first time, nor would I hold that the juvenile court is bound by the probation officer’s recommendation as to placement. What I say is simply that before the court can commit a minor to the Youth Authority there must be some evidence in the record to support a finding that he cannot be rehabilitated at a local facility. Such a rule is in keeping with the spirit and intent of the Juvenile Court Law. (Welf. & Inst. Code,-§ 502; In re Aline D., supra, 14 Cal.3d at pp. 564-565.)
There is another reason why the case must be reversed and remanded for reconsideration. Welfare and Institutions Code section 726 provides that no ward shall be taken from the physical custody of a parent unless upon the hearing the court finds one of the following facts: (a) that the parent is incapable of providing or has failed or neglected to provide proper maintenance, training and education for the minor; (b) that the minor has been tried on probation and such custody and has failed to reform; or (c) that the welfare of the minor requires that his custody be taken from his parent. Such a finding under section 726 is a jurisdictional prerequisite to the removal of a minor from the custody of his parent or guardian. (In re Edwards (1930) 208 Cal. 725, 731 [284 P. 916]; In re Batey (1960) 183 Cal.App.2d 78, 80 [6 Cal.Rptr. 655]; In re Syson (1960) 184 Cal.App.2d 111, 113-114 [7 Cal.Rptr. 298]; In re Bacon (1966) 240 Cal.App.2d 34, 59 [49 Cal.Rptr. 322]; In re Macidon (1966) 240 Cal.App.2d 600, 607 [49 Cal.Rptr. 861]; In re Adele L. (1968) 267 Cal.App.2d 397, 405-406 [73 Cal.Rptr. 76].)
In the instant case the requisite finding is not entered in the minutes, nor does the court make the finding orally. The court merely stated: “Pursuant to section 726 of the Welfare and Institutions Code, the minor is ordered ... is removed from the custody of his parents.” The absence of a specific finding under section 726 is particularly significant. The probation officer’s report stated that while the minor’s parents realized that their son was beyond their control and that an out-of-home placement could be of benefit to him they also said that they were willing to work with the probation department in order to bring about an acceptable behavioral change. This statement could be interpreted as *272meaning that the parents believed that their son could be straightened out by means of strict juvenile court probationary procedures while he remained in their home.
I would reverse the judgment.
Appellant’s petition for a hearing by the Supreme Court was denied April 28, 1976.

 Sections 727 and 730 provide for alternate dispositions less severe than the Youth Authority including a juvenile home, ranch, forestry camp, or the custody of some reputable person of good moral character, or some appropriate association, society, corporation or agency.