41-5-208. Transfer of supervisory responsibility to district court after juvenile disposition -- nonextended jurisdiction and nontransferred cases, MCA

Montana Code Annotated 2025

TITLE 41. MINORS

CHAPTER 5. YOUTH COURT ACT

Part 2. Youth Court -- Jurisdiction -- Records

Transfer Of Supervisory Responsibility To District Court After Juvenile Disposition -- Nonextended Jurisdiction And Nontransferred Cases

41-5-208. Transfer of supervisory responsibility to district court after juvenile disposition -- nonextended jurisdiction and nontransferred cases. (1) (a) After adjudication by the court of a case that was not sentenced to district court pursuant to 41-5-206 and that was not prosecuted as an extended jurisdiction juvenile prosecution under part 16 of this chapter, the court may, on the youth's motion or the motion of the county attorney, transfer jurisdiction to the district court and order the transfer of supervisory responsibility from juvenile probation services to adult probation services. A transfer based on a motion may be made at any time after a youth reaches 18 years of age but before the youth reaches 21 years of age.

(b) A transfer under this section may be made to ensure continued compliance with the court's disposition under 41-5-1512 or 41-5-1513 or through stipulation to provide the youth with additional supervision, care, rehabilitation, detention, competency development, and community protection.

(2) Before transfer, the court shall hold a hearing on whether the transfer should be made. The hearing must be held in conformity with the rules on a hearing on a petition alleging delinquency, except that the hearing must be conducted by the court without a jury. The court shall give the youth, the youth's counsel, and the youth's parents, guardian, or custodian notice in writing of the time, place, and purpose of the hearing at least 10 days before the hearing. At the hearing, the youth is entitled to receive:

(a) written notice of the motion to transfer;

(b) an opportunity to be heard in person and to present witnesses and evidence;

(c) a written statement by the court of the evidence relied on and reasons for the transfer;

(d) the right to cross-examine witnesses, unless the court finds good cause for not allowing confrontation; and

(e) the right to counsel.

(3) After the hearing, if the court finds by a preponderance of the evidence that transfer of continuing supervisory responsibility to the district court is appropriate, the court shall order the transfer.

(4) If a youth whose case has been transferred to district court under this section violates a disposition previously imposed under 41-5-1512 or 41-5-1513, the district court may, after hearing, impose conditions as provided under 46-18-201 through 46-18-203 but may not place a youth in a state adult correctional facility unless the youth was adjudicated for a felony offense.

(5) (a) The hearings under subsections (2) and (4) may be waived by the youth through a stipulation in writing prior to or after an adjudication by the court of a case that was not:

(i) sentenced in district court pursuant to 41-5-206; or

(ii) prosecuted as an extended jurisdiction juvenile prosecution under part 16 of this chapter.

(b) Jurisdiction must automatically transfer to the district court, and supervisory responsibility must automatically transfer to adult probation services on the youth turning 18 years of age. The district court may impose conditions as provided under 46-18-201 through 46-18-203, but the youth may not be incarcerated in a state adult correctional facility unless stipulated by the parties.

(c) The stipulation provided for in subsection (5)(a) must:

(i) advise the youth of their rights to a hearing pursuant to subsections (2) and (4);

(ii) advise the youth that the youth is knowingly and voluntarily waiving the right to hearings;

(iii) advise the youth of the youth's right to counsel; and

(iv) specify the age the youth is to be supervised by adult probation services, up to 25 years of age.

(6) If, at the time of transfer, the youth is incarcerated in a correctional facility, the district court may order that the youth, after reaching 18 years of age:

(a) be incarcerated in a state adult correctional facility if the youth was adjudicated for a felony offense, boot camp, or prerelease center; or

(b) be supervised by the department.

(7) The district court's jurisdiction over a case transferred under this section terminates when the youth reaches 25 years of age.

History: En. Sec. 6, Ch. 438, L. 1995; amd. Sec. 4, Ch. 286, L. 1997; amd. Sec. 4, Ch. 498, L. 1997; amd. Sec. 19, Ch. 550, L. 1997; amd. Sec. 3, Ch. 537, L. 1999; amd. Sec. 1, Ch. 51, L. 2015; amd. Sec. 9, Ch. 339, L. 2021; amd. Sec. 2, Ch. 438, L. 2025.