10.12Required Procedures When a Juvenile Escapes From Placement
MCL 750.186a(1) makes it a felony for an individual who is placed in a juvenile facility to escape or attempt to escape from that juvenile facility or from the custody of an employee of that facility.39 A juvenile facility includes an institution operated as an agency of the county or court, and a state institution to which an offender has been committed for a misdemeanor or felony offense. MCL 750.186a(2)(b).
A.Notification Required When Juvenile Escapes
A law enforcement agency must be notified when a juvenile escapes from a facility or residence in which he or she has been placed. Specifically, MCL 712A.18j(1) states:
“If a juvenile escapes from a facility or residence in which he or she has been placed for a violation described in section 2(a)(1) of this chapter [(violations of law or ordinance)], other than his or her own home or the home of his or her parent or guardian, the individual at that facility or residence who has responsibility for maintaining custody of the juvenile at the time of the escape shall immediately notify 1 of the following of the escape or cause 1 of the following to be immediately notified of the escape:
“(a) If the escape occurs in a city, village, or township that has a police department, the police department of that city, village, or township.
“(b) Except as provided in subdivision (a), 1 of the following:
“(i) The sheriff department of the county in which the escape occurs.
“(ii) The department of state police post having jurisdiction over the area in which the escape occurs.”
MCL 400.115n and MCL 803.306a contain substantially similar provisions regarding juveniles placed with the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) and juveniles committed to the DHHS (public wards), respectively.
A juvenile’s escape must be entered into the Law Enforcement Information Network (“LEIN”). MCL 400.115n(2); MCL 712A.18j(2); MCL 803.306a(3).
In juvenile delinquency proceedings, if the victim requests notification in writing, the DHHS, county juvenile agency, or court must give the victim notice of the juvenile’s escape from “a secure detention or treatment facility.” MCL 780.798(3). The victim must be given “immediate notice of the escape by any means reasonably calculated to give prompt actual notice.” Id.
In addition, upon the victim’s written request, the court, the DHHS, or county juvenile agency must make a good faith effort to notify the victim when the juvenile is detained for committing a subsequent criminal offense. MCL 780.798(1)(d).
B.Apprehension of Juveniles Absent From Placement Without Authority
The court may issue an order to apprehend a juvenile who is absent without leave from a facility or institution in which the juvenile has been committed under MCL 712A.18. MCL 712A.2c. The order must identify the juvenile and the location “where there is probable cause to believe the juvenile is to be found.” Id.
A public ward40 may be apprehended and returned to placement without a warrant. MCL 803.306(1).
C.Detaining Juvenile Who Leaves Placement Without Authority
If a juvenile who has been found responsible for committing a criminal offense is apprehended after leaving his or her out-of-home placement without authority, the juvenile may be detained without the right to bail if authorized by the court. MCR 3.946(A). A juvenile who is placed in secure detention is entitled to a detention hearing within 48 hours of being taken into custody, excluding Sundays and holidays, if “no new petition is filed that would require a preliminary hearing pursuant to MCR 3.935, and no probation violation petition is filed[.]” MCR 3.946(B). “At the detention hearing the court must:
“(1) assure that the custodial parent, guardian, or legal custodian has been notified, if that person’s whereabouts are known,
“(2) advise the juvenile of the right to be represented by an attorney,
“(3) determine whether the juvenile should be released or should continue to be detained.” MCR 3.946(C).
The court must advise a juvenile of their appellate rights set forth in MCR 3.937 at the conclusion of any delinquency hearing at which the court orders that the juvenile be removed from a parent’s care and custody. MCR 3.937(A).41
39. “‘[E]scape’ means to leave without lawful authority or to fail to return to custody when required.” MCL 712A.18j(3).
40. A “public ward” is defined as either “[a] youth accepted for care by a youth agency who is at least 12 years of age when committed to the youth agency by . . . the family division of circuit court under [MCL 712A.18(1)(e)], if the court acquired jurisdiction over the youth under [MCL 712A.2(a) (violations of law or ordinance and certain status offenses)] or [MCL 712A.2(d) (“wayward minor” status offenses)], and the act for which the youth is committed occurred before his or her eighteenth birthday[,]” or “[a] youth accepted for care by a youth agency who is at least 14 years of age when committed to the youth agency by a court of general criminal jurisdiction under . . . MCL 769.1, if the act for which the youth is committed occurred before his or her eighteenth birthday.” MCL 803.302(c).
41. See Section 10.11 for additional information on MCR 3.937.