North Carolina § 7B-1604 - Limitations on juvenile court jurisdiction.

§ 7B-1604. Limitations on juvenile court jurisdiction.

Any juvenile, including a juvenile who is under the jurisdiction of the court, who commits a criminal offense on or after the juvenile has reached the age of 18 years is subject to prosecution as an adult. A juvenile who is emancipated shall be prosecuted as an adult for the commission of a criminal offense. A juvenile shall be prosecuted as an adult for any criminal offense the juvenile commits after a district or superior court conviction if either of the following applies: The juvenile has previously been transferred to and convicted in superior court. The juvenile has previously been convicted in either district or superior court for a felony or a misdemeanor. Violations of the motor vehicle laws punishable as a misdemeanor or infraction shall not be considered a conviction for the purposes of this subsection unless the conviction is for an offense involving impaired driving as defined by G.S. 20-4.01(24a). History (1979, c. 815, s. 1; 1981, c. 469, s. 4; 1983, c. 837, s. 1; 1985, c. 459, s. 2; 1987, c. 409, s. 2; 1995, c. 328, s. 3; c. 462, s. 2; 1996, 2nd Ex. Sess., c. 18, s. 23.2(c); 1998-202, s. 6; 2017-57, s. 16D.4(c); 2018-142, s. 23(b); 2019-186, s. 2.) Editor's Note. - Session Laws 2017-57, s. 16D.4(tt), as amended by Session Laws 2018-142, s. 23(b), provides: "Sections 16D.4(a) through 16D.4(s) of this act become effective December 1, 2019, and apply to offenses committed on or after that date. Sections 16D.4(t) through 16D.4(x) of this act become effective October 1, 2017, and Sections 16D.4(t) through 16D.4(w) apply to all complaints filed on or after that date. Except as otherwise provided in this section, the remainder of this section is effective when it becomes law. Prosecutions or delinquency proceedings initiated for offenses committed before any particular subsection of this section becomes effective are not abated or affected by this act, and the statutes that are in effect on the dates the offenses are committed remain applicable to those prosecutions." Session Laws 2017-57, s. 16D.4(c), substituted "juvenile has reached the age of 18 years” for "juvenile's sixteenth birthday” in the first sentence of subsection (a); and rewrote subsection (b), which read: "A juvenile who is transferred to and convicted in superior court shall be prosecuted as an adult for any criminal offense the juvenile commits after the superior court conviction.” Session Laws 2017-57, s. 1.1, provides: "This act shall be known as the 'Current Operations Appropriations Act of 2017.'" Session Laws 2017-57, s. 39.6, is a severability clause. Session Laws 2019-186, s. 12, made the amendment of subsection (b) by Session Laws 2019-186, s. 2, effective December 1, 2019, and applicable to offenses committed on or after that date. Effect of Amendments. - Session Laws 2017-57, s. 16D.4(c), substituted "juvenile has reached the age of 18 years" for "juvenile's sixteenth birthday" in the first sentence of subsection (a); and rewrote subsection (b), which read: "A juvenile who is transferred to and convicted in superior court shall be prosecuted as an adult for any criminal offense the juvenile commits after the superior court conviction." For effective date and applicability, see editor's note. Session Laws 2019-186, s. 2, rewrote subsection (b), which formerly read: "A juvenile (i) who is transferred to and convicted in superior court or (ii) who has previously been convicted in either district or superior court for a felony or a misdemeanor, including a violation of the motor vehicle laws under State law, shall be prosecuted as an adult for any criminal offense the juvenile commits after the district or superior court conviction." For effective date and applicability, see editor's note. Legal Periodicals. - For survey of 1979 family law, see 58 N.C.L. Rev. 1471 (1980). For article, "Juvenile Justice in Transition - A New Juvenile Code for North Carolina," see 16 Wake Forest L. Rev. 1 (1980). For article on the efficacy of a probable cause requirement in juvenile proceedings, see 59 N.C.L. Rev. 723 (1981). For article discussing 1983 amendments to the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure relative to magistrate practice, comparing state court magistrate practice, and making certain suggestions, see 20 Wake Forest L. Rev. 819 (1984). For article, "Re-Imaging Childhood and Reconstructing the Legal Order: the Case for Abolishing the Juvenile Court," see 69 N.C.L. Rev. 1083 (1991). For comment, "'It's Not World Peace, But...' Restorative Justice: Analysis of Recidivism Rates in Campbell Law School's Juvenile Justice Project," see 30 Campbell L. Rev. 339 (2008). For article, "Casting off the Curse of God n1: Litigation Versus Legislation and the Educational Rights of Youth in North Carolina's Adult Criminal Justice System," see 91 N.C. L. Rev. 36 (2013).