Cite as: 10 CNCA § 1104.2

A. Any person sixteen (16) or seventeen (17) years of age who is charged with murder, kidnapping for purposes of extortion, robbery with a dangerous weapon, rape in the first degree, use of firearm or other offensive weapon while committing a felony, arson in the first degree, burglary with explosives, shooting with intent to kill, manslaughter in the first degree, nonconsensual sodomy, or manufacturing, distributing, dispensing, or possessing with intent to manufacture, distribute, or dispense a controlled dangerous substance, shall be considered as an adult. Upon the arrest and detention, such sixteen-or seventeen-year-old accused shall have all the statutory and constitutional rights and protections of an adult accused of a crime, but shall be detained in a jail cell or ward entirely separate from prisoners who are eighteen (18) years of age or over.

B. Upon the filing of an information against such accused person, a warrant shall be issued which shall set forth the rights of the accused person, and the rights of the parents, guardian or next friend of the accused person to be present at hearings, to have an attorney present and to make application for certification of such accused person as a child to the juvenile division of the District Court. The warrant shall be personally served together with a certified copy of the information on the accused person and on the parents, guardian or next friend of the accused person.

C. The accused person shall file a motion for certification as a child before the start of the criminal trial. Upon the filing of such motion, the complete juvenile record of the accused shall be made available to the prosecuting attorney and the accused person.

The accused person may have a hearing on the motion for certification as a child or may at the conclusion of the Nation's case at the criminal trial, the accused person may offer evidence to support the motion for certification as a child.

The Court shall rule on the certification motion of the accused person before ruling on other dispositive motions at trial. When ruling on the certification motion of the accused person, the Court shall give consideration to the following guidelines, listed in order of importance:

1. Whether the alleged offense was committed in an aggressive, violent, premeditated or willful manner;

2. Whether the offense was against persons or property, greater weight being given for retaining the accused person within the adult criminal system for offenses against persons, especially if personal injury resulted;

3. The record and past history of the accused person, including previous contacts with law enforcement agencies and juvenile or criminal courts, prior periods of probation and commitments to juvenile institutions; and

4. The prospects for adequate protection of the public if the accused person is processed through the juvenile system.

The Court, in its decision on the certification motion of the accused person, need not detail responses to each of the above considerations, but shall state that the Court has considered each of the guidelines in reaching its decision.

D. Upon the Court's ruling on the accused person's motion for certification as a child, if the accused person is certified as a child to the juvenile division of the District Court, then all adult court records relative to the accused person and this charge shall be expunged and any mention of the accused person shall be removed from public record.

E. An order certifying a person as a child or denying the request for certification as a child pursuant to subsection (D) of this section shall be a final order, appealable when entered.