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How can I get a bail review in superior court Juvenile bail review procedures vary among counties. It is important to find out what the practice is in your county. You should state on the record at arraignment that you are requesting a bail petition and ask the judge to complete his or her reasons for bail, obtain and file the proper paperwork, make sure DYS has the necessary paperwork to bring your client in for a bail petition, and inform your client's family where the bail review will be heard. Are there different issues regarding bail for children as opposed to adults M.G.L.c.276 §58 applies to juveniles -- a presumption of personal recognizance exists. Since you are dealing with children, courts often look at different factors. The court may be concerned about how your client is doing in school and at home, such as whether they comply with curfew and home rules. You should be prepared to answer these questions at arraignment. The judge may release your client under pre-trial conditions pursuant to M.G.L.c.276 §87. See Jake J. v. Commonwealth, 433 Mass. 70 (2000). Will my client's court case affect his or her ability to stay in school What can I do to help Will I get paid M.G.L.c.71 §37H _ provides that upon issuance of a criminal or delinquency complaint charging a student with a felony, the principal of the school the student attends may suspend him/her for as long of a period of time as the principal deems appropriate. The principal may suspend a student even if the alleged incident happened off school grounds, and has nothing to do with school. In order to suspend the student, the principal must determine that the student's continued presence at the school would have a "substantial detrimental effect" on the general welfare of the school. The student must be provided written notice of the charges and reasons for the principal's decision, before the suspension takes effect. The student must also receive notice of his or her right to appeal this decision to the superintendent of schools, and the process for pursuing this appeal. If the student wishes to appeal the principal's decision, he or she must notify the superintendent in writing no later than five days after the effective date of the suspension. If the student appeals the principal's decision, he or she is entitled to a hearing within three calendar days of the request. At the hearing, the student has the right to present oral and written testimony on his or her behalf and has the right to have an attorney present. The superintendent has the authority to overturn or alter the decision of the principal, including recommending an alternative educational program for the student. The superintendent must issue a decision within five calendar days of the hearing. If the student's due process rights were violated, the decision may be appealed to superior court. A student may be expelled upon adjudication or conviction of a felony. The same notice, due process and appeals procedures stated above apply to children who are adjudicated delinquent or convicted of a felony. Students who receive special educational services have more protections than regular education students. In order to exclude a special education student the TEAM must make a determination that the conduct in question was not a manifestation of the student's disability. Title 20, Chapter 33, Section 1415 of the United States Code outlines the procedural safeguards children with disabilities must be provided when charged in criminal or delinquency proceedings.
As the student's attorney, you can initiate the appeal process and in turn represent the student at the suspension or expulsion hearing. Effective representation at these proceedings requires that you first obtain a release from the student and his or her parent and assemble his or her school records. You should also obtain a copy of the school handbook and M.G.L.c.71, §37H_. You should also obtain a copy of Title 20, Chapter 33, Section 1415 if your client receives special education services. At present, CPCS is only paying attorneys who call and receive individual permission to represent their clients at these hearings. Individual permission has been granted where the school hearing bears a direct relationship to the client's case, i.e., the offense is alleged to have happened on school grounds. To obtain individual permission, you should contact Helen Fremont at (617) 482-6212. Attorneys can also seek indigent court cost funds for the purposes of hiring an educational advocate, but should consult the CPCS guidelines for the specific definition of an education advocate prior to hiring one. Will a delinquency finding or youthful offender conviction affect my clients' immigration status What can I do about this How do I advise my client At this time we are unaware of delinquency cases or youthful offender cases leading directly to deportation. However, it seems likely that the INS will eventually view Youthful Offender adjudications as identical to adult convictions. It is also the case that both delinquency and youthful offender adjudications may be used now to exclude aliens who have left the country and are attempting to reenter. They may also be used to deny people green cards or citizenship. In Massachusetts, a "continued without a finding (CWOF)" disposition is a conviction for immigration purposes. It is always advisable to avoid adjudication if possible. It may also be important to avoid adjudications on certain charges. We highly recommend consulting with an immigration attorney before resolving the case. It is unlikely that an immigration attorney could give your client good advice without speaking with you. Contact the National Immigration Project at (617) 227-9727 for more detailed advice. Once a child is committed to DYS, how much time will they actually do How do I advise my client about this DYS has a classification grid that outlines the minimum and maximum treatment times for every offense. DYS will use your client's most serious offense to determine where he or she will be placed on the grid. Your client will have to do at least the minimum time shown on the grid. It is best to stress to your client that this is the least amount of time that he or she will have to do in a program, and that he or she may have to do longer than this. The time is considered "treatment time" by DYS. The amount of time assigned to a client by DYS is considered a guideline. This means that your client will not be released until DYS believes that your client has completed his or her treatment and is ready to go back into the community. Unlike a state prison or house of correction sentence, it is not set in stone. You can obtain a copy of this grid from DYS by calling (617) 727-7575.
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