STANDARDS GOVERNING HOME PASSES
TO DELINQUENT CHILDREN IN PLACEMENT
PREAMBLE
The Juvenile Act provides that if a child is found to be a delinquent child, the court is to enter an order of
disposition best suited to the child's treatment, supervision, rehabilitation
and welfare, which shall, as appropriate to the individual circumstances of the
child's case, provide balanced attention to the protection of the community,
the imposition of accountability for offenses committed and the development of
competencies to enable the child to become a responsible and productive member
of the community.
When the Court determines that the commitment of a
delinquent child to residential placement is the most appropriate disposition
in a particular case, a written supervision/treatment plan must be developed.
The temporary return of a delinquent child to the community
during a child's period of residential placement is commonly known as a
"home pass". Home passes
provide delinquent children with the opportunity to demonstrate their ability
to function responsibly in their communities, and can be especially important
as delinquent children approach release from placement.
Home passes should be granted by the court only when
determined to be consistent with public safety and the following standards, and
should be scheduled to facilitate the achievement of specific goals that are
consistent with the child's supervision/treatment plan.
These standards are not intended to apply to the granting of
home passes to delinquent children in foster care placements.
I.
Juvenile Courts shall establish written policies and
procedures governing the granting of home passes to delinquent children in
placement which, at a minimum, comprise:
A. the authorization
process for home passes, including the time frames within which requests from
residential facilities must be received;
B. pre-home pass notifications;
C. the responsibilities of the juvenile
probation department during the time that a delinquent child is in the
community on a home pass;
D. the responsibilities of the juvenile
probation department in the event a delinquent child fails to return from a
home pass; and
E. the post-home pass assessment process.
II.
Public safety considerations and the degree to which a
child presents a risk to the community shall be paramount throughout the
process of determining whether a home pass should be granted to a delinquent
child. Consistent with the protection
of the public interest, each home pass shall be considered individually, and
authorized only after giving consideration to the following criteria:
A. the most recent offense(s) committed by the
child, with specific consideration given to:
1. the
impact of the offense(s) on the victim or victims;
2. the
impact of the offense(s) on the community; and
3. whether
a weapon was involved.
B. the nature and extent of the child's previous
offense history;
C. the child's response to previous supervision
or intervention;
D. the number and nature of the child's prior
residential placements;
E. the child's previous home pass experiences;
F. the length of time the child has been in the
current placement;
G. the degree to which progress has been made by
the child toward the achievement of established goals while in placement;
H. the supervision that will be provided to the
child during the proposed home pass; and
I. whether the time and duration of the proposed home pass are
consistent with the goals the child is to achieve during the home pass.
III.
A home pass shall be authorized only after the
responsibilities of the parent(s)/guardian(s), delinquent child, juvenile
probation department, and residential facility have been agreed upon and
reduced to writing. These
responsibilities shall, at a minimum, include:
A. the responsibilities of the residential
facility, which shall be set forth in a written agreement between the
residential facility and the juvenile probation department, with regard to:
1. transportation
arrangements for the child to and from the site of the home pass;
2. communication
with the child and parent(s)/guardian(s) during the home pass;
3. monitoring
the child during the home pass;
4. the
failure of the child to return from the home pass; and
5. communicating,
within five business days following the home pass, with the child,
parent(s)/guardian(s), juvenile probation department, and other entities as
appropriate, to determine the extent to which the goals for the home pass were
achieved, and notifying the juvenile probation department of the results of
this determination.
B. the responsibilities of the
parent(s)/guardian(s), with regard to:
1. transportation
arrangements for the child to and from the home pass;
2. monitoring
the behavior of the child during the home pass;
3. reporting
non-compliance with the supervision plan during the home pass; and
4. communicating
with the juvenile probation department and residential facility staff,
following the home pass, to determine the extent to which goals established for
the home pass were achieved.
C. the responsibilities of the juvenile
probation department with regard to:
1. responding
to violations of the conditions of the home pass;
2. as
appropriate to the circumstances of the individual case, monitoring the child
during the home pass;
3. coordinating
the location and apprehension of the child, if the child fails to return from
the home pass; and
4. communicating,
following the home pass, with the child, parent(s)/guardian(s), residential
facility staff, and other entities as appropriate, to determine the extent to
which goals established for the home pass were achieved.
D. the responsibilities of the child during the
home pass, with regard to:
1. the
achievement of specific goals during the home pass;
2. curfew
times;
3. call-in
times to the residential facility and, as appropriate, to the juvenile
probation department;
4.
returning from the home pass, as required.
IV.
A home pass shall be authorized only after the location of
the prospective home pass has been approved following an on-site assessment by
the juvenile probation department. The
approval of this location by the assigned probation officer shall be documented
in writing.
V.
A home pass for a delinquent child who is committed to a
secure residential facility shall be authorized only upon the written approval
of a Juvenile Court Judge.
VI.
A home pass for a delinquent child who is committed to a
non-secure residential facility shall be authorized only upon the written
approval of a Chief Juvenile Probation Officer or designee.
VII.
Notice that a delinquent child has been granted a home pass
shall be provided by the Chief Juvenile Probation Officer, or designee, to the
arresting law enforcement agency, and the law enforcement agency having
jurisdiction in the community to which the child will be returning, if other
than the arresting agency. This notice
shall be provided before the child returns to the community in conjunction with
the home pass.
In some jurisdictions, it may be appropriate for such notice to be provided by the District Attorney.
VIII.
Subsequent to the commitment of a delinquent child to a
residential facility, the Chief Juvenile Probation Officer, or designee, shall
advise all crime victims associated with the case that, upon their request,
they will be notified if the child is granted a home pass.
In some jurisdictions, it may be appropriate for this notice to be provided by the District Attorney or a victim services agency.
IX.
Before a delinquent child who has been granted a home pass
returns to the community, the Chief Juvenile Probation Officer, or designee,
shall provide notice of the home pass to all victims of crimes that resulted in
the child's commitment, if they have requested to receive such notification.
In some
jurisdictions, it may be appropriate for this notice to be provided by the
District Attorney or a victim services agency.
X.
Juvenile probation departments shall ensure that violations
of home pass conditions, or other significant issues, are promptly addressed
when a delinquent child has been granted a home pass.
XI.
The primary responsibility for the coordination of the
location and apprehension of a delinquent child who fails to return from a home
pass shall rest with the Chief Juvenile Probation Officer.
The Chief
Juvenile Probation Officer may, as appropriate, assign specific
responsibilities in this regard to subordinate staff.
XII.
The Chief Juvenile Probation Officer shall ensure that local
law enforcement agencies receive immediate notification of a child's failure to
return to a residential facility from a home pass and, as appropriate,
facilitate the entry of relevant information into the Commonwealth Law
Enforcement Assistance Network (CLEAN) and/or the National Crime Information
Center (NCIC).
XIII.
The Chief Juvenile Probation Officer, or designee, shall
promptly notify all crime victims who received notice of a child's home pass if
the child fails to return from the home pass as required.
Where notice
of a home pass was provided to a crime victim by an agency other than the
juvenile probation department, the Chief Juvenile Probation Officer, or
designee, shall promptly notify that agency of the child's failure to return
from the home pass.
XIV.
The Chief Juvenile Probation Officer shall promptly notify
all law enforcement agencies and crime victims that received notice of a
child's failure to return from a home pass when the child is apprehended or
returns to the residential facility.
XV.
The Chief Juvenile Probation Officer shall ensure that
written agreements developed with residential facilities pursuant to Standard
III(A) include provisions that require:
A. communication by
residential facility staff with the parent(s)/guardian(s) responsible for the
delinquent child during the home pass, immediately after it is determined that
the child failed to return to the residential facility; and
B. immediate notification to the appropriate
juvenile probation department by residential facility staff of a child's
failure to return from a home pass and, as additional information is obtained
from the parent(s)/guardian(s) or other sources regarding the circumstances
surrounding the incident, the child's whereabouts, or other important
information.
XVI.
Within five business days following the completion of a
child's home pass, the assigned juvenile probation officer shall initiate
contact with the parent(s)/guardian(s) responsible for the delinquent child
during the home pass to assess the degree to which the established goals for
the home pass were achieved, from the perspective of the
parent(s)/guardian(s). The results of
this assessment shall be entered into the case file.
XVII.
Within seven business days following the completion of a
child's home pass, and prior to giving consideration to granting a subsequent
home pass, the assigned juvenile probation officer shall initiate contact with
appropriate residential facility staff, if the facility failed to initiate
contact pursuant to Standard III(A)(5), to assess the degree to which
established goals for the home pass were achieved from the perspective of the
facility. The results of this assessment
shall be entered into the case file.
XVIII.
The Chief Juvenile Probation Officer shall ensure that
written agreements with residential facilities developed pursuant to Standard
III(A) include provisions that require residential facility staff, following
the home pass, to contact the parent(s)/guardian(s), and other entities as
appropriate, to determine the extent to which the established goals for the
home pass were achieved, and to notify the juvenile probation department of the
results of this determination.