Montana § 41-5-102 - Declaration Of Purpose

§ 41-5-102. Declaration Of Purpose

Declaration of purpose. The Montana Youth Court Act must be interpreted and construed to effectuate the following express legislative purposes: (1) to preserve the unity and welfare of the family whenever possible and to provide for the care, protection, and wholesome mental and physical development of a youth coming within the provisions of the Montana Youth Court Act; (2) to prevent and reduce youth delinquency through a system that does not seek retribution but that provides: (a) immediate, consistent, enforceable, and avoidable consequences of youths' actions; (b) a program of supervision, care, rehabilitation, detention, competency development, and community protection for youth before they become adult offenders; (c) in appropriate cases, restitution as ordered by the youth court; and (d) that, whenever removal from the home is necessary, the youth is entitled to maintain ethnic, cultural, or religious heritage whenever appropriate; (3) to achieve the purposes of subsections (1) and (2) in a family environment whenever possible, separating the youth from the parents only when necessary for the welfare of the youth or for the safety and protection of the community; (4) to provide judicial procedures in which the parties are ensured a fair, accurate hearing and recognition and enforcement of their constitutional and statutory rights.