Montana § 41-5-102 Declaration Of Purpose

Montana Statutes

§ 41-5-102 — Declaration Of Purpose

Montana § 41-5-102

Title 41MINORS

Ch. 5YOUTH COURT ACT

Part 1General

This text of Montana § 41-5-102 (Declaration Of Purpose) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Montana primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook

Mont. Code Ann. § 41-5-102 (2026).

Text

41-5-102 . Declaration of purpose. The Montana Youth Court Act must be interpreted and construed to effectuate the following express legislative purposes:

(1)to preserve the unity and welfare of the family whenever possible and to provide for the care, protection, and wholesome mental and physical development of a youth coming within the provisions of the Montana Youth Court Act;

(2)to prevent and reduce youth delinquency through a system that does not seek retribution but that provides:

(a)immediate, consistent, enforceable, and avoidable consequences of youths' actions;

(b)a program of supervision, care, rehabilitation, detention, competency development, and community protection for youth before they become adult offenders;

(c)in appropriate cases, restitution as ordered by the yout

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41-5-102 . Declaration of purpose. The Montana Youth Court Act must be interpreted and construed to effectuate the following express legislative purposes:
(1) to preserve the unity and welfare of the family whenever possible and to provide for the care, protection, and wholesome mental and physical development of a youth coming within the provisions of the Montana Youth Court Act;
(2) to prevent and reduce youth delinquency through a system that does not seek retribution but that provides:
(a) immediate, consistent, enforceable, and avoidable consequences of youths' actions;
(b) a program of supervision, care, rehabilitation, detention, competency development, and community protection for youth before they become adult offenders;
(c) in appropriate cases, restitution as ordered by the youth court; and
(d) that, whenever removal from the home is necessary, the youth is entitled to maintain ethnic, cultural, or religious heritage whenever appropriate;
(3) to achieve the purposes of subsections (1) and (2) in a family environment whenever possible, separating the youth from the parents only when necessary for the welfare of the youth or for the safety and protection of the community;
(4) to provide judicial procedures in which the parties are ensured a fair, accurate hearing and recognition and enforcement of their constitutional and statutory rights.

Legislative History

En. 10-1202 by Sec. 2, Ch. 329, L. 1974; R.C.M. 1947, 10-1202; amd. Sec. 1, Ch. 246, L. 1979; amd. Sec. 3, Ch. 528, L. 1995; amd. Sec. 1, Ch. 537, L. 1999; amd. Sec. 1, Ch. 512, L. 2005.