C.B., In re

• Decision Date: 04 March 1998
• Parties: 97-2783 La
• Court: Louisiana Supreme Court

Page 391

708 So.2d 391

97-2783 La. 3/4/98

In re C.B., R.B., T.C., R.C., S.C., et al.

No. 97-KA-2783.

Supreme Court of Louisiana.

March 4, 1998.

William L. Kline, Clinton, Martha S. Morgan, Baton Rouge, Richard P. Ieyoub, Attorney General, Carlos M. Finalet, III, Baton Rouge, for Applicant.

Stephen Dixon, Baton Rouge, David J. Utter, New Orleans, for Respondent.

David Lambert, Natchitoches, for amicus curiae National Center of Youth Law.

[97-2783 La. 1] CALOGERO, Chief Justice. ^*

This case presents an important issue which brings into focus the competing interests of governmental necessity and constitutional principle, having to do with the incarceration of juveniles adjudicated delinquent and the shortage of bed space within the juvenile facilities. The case comes to us because the Legislature passed a statute authorizing the Department of Public Safety and Corrections to promulgate a regulation requiring juveniles who have been adjudicated delinquent (not convicted of a crime) to be transferred to adult facilities upon reaching the age of seventeen. During their confinement in the adult facility, they are, according to the regulation promulgated by the Department of Public Safety and Corrections, to be treated for punitive purposes the same as the convicted adult felons with whom they are confined. The juvenile court judge determined that both the statute and the regulation violated the juveniles' due process rights, and therefore did not pass constitutional muster. The case comes to this Court on direct appeal by the State under Article V, § 5(D) of the Louisiana Constitution.

FACTS AND PROCEDURAL HISTORY

On December 10, 1996, the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention of the United States Department of Justice published in the Federal Register revised rules pertaining to the requirement of sight and sound separation [97-2783 La. 2] between incarcerated juveniles and adults. Prior to these revisions, the states, and in particular Louisiana, would lose federal funding in the event of non-compliance with the sight and sound separation requirement. Recognizing that state laws were increasingly providing for the transfer of adjudicated delinquents to adult facilities upon their attaining the age of full criminal responsibility under state law, one of these revisions provided that the separation requirement is not violated as a result of contact between adjudicated delinquents and adult offenders once the adjudicated delinquent has reached the full age of criminal responsibility established by state law, provided that the transfer (or placement) of the adjudicated delinquent is required or authorized under state law. Rules and Regulations, Department of Justice, 61 Fed.Reg. 65,132 (1996) (codified at 28 C.F.R. § 31 (1996)).

Subsequent to this revision, the Louisiana Legislature enacted Act 1063 (House Bill 1253), effective July 14, 1997, which is now found at LSA-RS 15:902.1. That statute reads in pertinent part:

Notwithstanding Title VIII of the Louisiana Children's Code or any other provision of law, the secretary of the department may promulgate rules and regulations to authorize the transfer of adjudicated juvenile delinquents to adult correctional facilities when the delinquents have attained the age of seventeen years, the age of full criminal responsibility.

LSA-RS 15:902.1

The stated policy behind the passage of the Act was to create space in the local juvenile facilities for younger juveniles. (House Committee on Administration of Criminal Justice, Minutes of the May 7, 1997 meeting, 1997 Regular Session). Pursuant to this statute, the secretary promulgated regulation B-02-008, published in the August 1997 issue of the Louisiana Register, as an [97-2783 La. 3] emergency rule. ¹ That emergency rule provided the policy and procedures by which the juveniles would be transferred. Pursuant to Section D(1) of the regulation, juvenile offenders who are adjudicated delinquent for an offense that, if committed by an adult, could not result in a sentence at hard labor, are not eligible for transfer. Juveniles can generally be transferred to one of the following five adult correctional facilities: Adult Reception and Diagnostic Center; Elayn Hunt Correctional Center; Wade Reception and Diagnostic Center; David Wade Correctional Center; and Louisiana Correctional Institute for Women. 23 Louisiana Register 22:335(D)(3) (August, 1997). Transferred juveniles will not have a parole or diminution of sentence release date. Rather, they will have a "full term date," which will in no circumstance exceed the juveniles' twenty-first birthday. Id. at 22:335(D)(4). Juveniles may still be recommended for early release by the adult facility, which must report the location and condition of the juvenile to the juvenile court every six months. Id. at 22:335(E)(10). Transferred juveniles are to participate in all work, education, and other rehabilitative programs on the same basis as adult inmates and will be subject to the same disciplinary processes. Id. at 22:335(D)(5). Juvenile records are to remain confidential. Id. at 22:335(D)(6).

The transfer procedure set out in the regulation provides for the creation of a classification committee which is to be formed at all juvenile facilities to review all relevant information to identify offenders for eligibility and suitability for transfer. Id. at 22:335(E)(1). Eight factors are to be considered by the committee when evaluating a juvenile for possible transfer. They are as follows: (1) [97-2783 La. 4] chronological age of 17 years old or older; (2) emotional and physical maturity (3) disciplinary history and potential to disrupt juvenile institutional operations; (4) potential to benefit from educational programs; (5) potential to benefit from other programs; (6) diagnosis with mental health and/or special medical needs that can be better served in an adult facility; (7) those juveniles who pose a security risk, i.e. considered escape risks, exhibit violent behavior, committed for a serious offense, or have extensive criminal histories; and (6) to accomplish one of the following objectives: (a) minimize risk to the public; (b) minimize risk to the institutional staff; (c) minimize risk to other offenders. Although the juvenile's disciplinary history is a factor for consideration, the transfer itself is not to be construed as a disciplinary sanction. After recommendation by the classification committee, the warden of each juvenile facility reviews the recommendation and makes the final decision relative to transfer. According to Section E(5) of the regulation, once a juvenile is transferred to an adult facility, that juvenile will not be returned to a secure juvenile facility within the Department of Public Safety and Corrections, and any subsequent placement in a non-secure juvenile program is considered generally inappropriate. ²

Following passage of the Act and the promulgation of the emergency regulation, the Department of Public Safety and Corrections transferred the first group of thirty-two juveniles from juvenile facilities to adult facilities. On September 3, 1997, the five named juveniles ³ filed a "Motion to Stay Transfers to [97-2783 La. 5] Adult Prisons" and an "Application for Preliminary Injunctive Relief" in the Juvenile Court for East Baton Rouge Parish. In addition to the five named juveniles, "John Doe and Other Juveniles Adjudicated but Unknown Who Have Attained the Age of Seventeen and Are in State's Custody" were listed as petitioners. The petitioners contended in these pleadings that LSA-RS 15:902.1 violated Equal Protection, Due Process, and Ex Post Facto protections, as well as the constitutional guarantees against cruel and unusual punishment. The petitioners further argued that the statute was unconstitutional on its face because it derogates from the constitutional mandate of "special" treatment for juvenile offenders. The juvenile court held that under Article V, § 19 of the Louisiana Constitution, ⁴ juveniles have a liberty interest in juvenile correctional treatment, and that neither LSA-RS 15:902.1 nor the regulation passed constitutional muster because neither provided the juveniles adequate procedural due process to justify deprivation of that liberty interest. The juvenile court further concluded that the petitioners had satisfied the burden of showing irreparable injury in that LSA-RS 15:902.1 violated their due process rights, and the court granted the application for injunctive relief enjoining the Department from effectuating further transfers. ⁵ The Department filed a Motion to Stay the trial court's ruling in this Court. It was denied. ⁶ Subsequently, the petitioners sought, in this Court, a statewide stay of the transfer of juveniles to adult facilities. That too was denied. ⁷

[97-2783 La. 6] In this Court, the State and the Department assign four errors. They are as follows: (1) LSA-RS 15:902.1 does not violate the Ex Post Facto Clauses of the State or Federal Constitutions; (2) LSA-RS 15:902.1 does not violate the Due Process Clauses of the State or Federal Constitutions; (3) LSA-RS 15:902.1 does not violate the Equal Protections Clauses of the State or Federal Constitutions; and (4) LSA-RS 15:902.1 does not violate the state and federal prohibitions against cruel and unusual punishment.

The Department of Public Safety and Corrections makes the following two additional assignments of error: (1) the lower court erred in determining that the petitioners met their burden of establishing irreparable injury in support of their motion for a permanent injunction; and (2) the Prison Litigation Reform Act prohibited the court from issuing a permanent injunction. In addition to the constitutional arguments asserted in the lower court, the appellees assert in this Court that the transfer statute is an unconstitutional violation of the separation of powers doctrine under Article II, § 2 of the Louisiana Constitution.

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