§ 507-A — Placement and commitment; procedures

§ 507-a. Placement and commitment; procedures. 1. Youth may be placed\nin or committed to the custody of the division:\n (a) for placement, as a juvenile delinquent pursuant to the family\ncourt act; or\n (b) for commitment pursuant to the penal law.\n 2. (a) Consistent with other provisions of law, only those youth who\nhave reached the age of twelve but who have not reached the age of\ntwenty-one, unless such youth is over the age of seven and less than\ntwelve years of age and has been adjudicated a juvenile delinquent\npursuant to subparagraph (iii) of paragraph (a) of subdivision one of\nsection 301.2 of the family court act, may be placed in the custody of\nthe office of children and family services. Except as provided for in\nparagraph (a-1) of this subdivision, no youth who has reached the age of\ntwenty-one may remain in custody of the office of children and family\nservices.\n (a-1) (i) A youth who is committed to the office of children and\nfamily services as a juvenile offender or a juvenile offender\nadjudicated as a youthful offender may remain in the custody of the\noffice during the period of his or her sentence beyond the age of\ntwenty-one in accordance with the provisions of subdivision five of\nsection five hundred eight of this title but in no event may such a\nyouth remain in the custody of the office beyond his or her twenty-third\nbirthday; and (ii) a youth found to have committed a designated class A\nfelony act who is restrictively placed with the office under subdivision\nfour of section 353.5 of the family court act for committing an act on\nor after the youth's sixteenth birthday may remain in the custody of the\noffice of children and family services up to the age of twenty-three in\naccordance with his or her placement order.\n (a-2) Whenever it shall appear to the satisfaction of the office of\nchildren and family services that any youth placed therewith is not of\nproper age to be so placed or is not properly placed, or is mentally or\nphysically incapable of being materially benefited by the program of the\noffice, the office shall cause the return of such youth to the county\nfrom which placement was made.\n (b) The division shall deliver such youth to the custody of the\nplacing court, along with the records provided to the division pursuant\nto section five hundred seven-b of this article, there to be dealt with\nby the court in all respects as though no placement had been made.\n (c) The cost and expense of the care and return of such youth incurred\nby the division shall be reimbursed to the state by the social services\ndistrict from which such youth was placed in the manner provided by\nsection five hundred twenty-nine of this article.\n 3. The division may photograph any youth in its custody. Such\nphotograph may be used only for the purpose of assisting in the return\nof conditionally released children and runaways pursuant to section five\nhundred ten-b of this article. Such photograph shall be destroyed\nimmediately upon the discharge of the youth from division custody.\n 4. (a) A youth placed with or committed to the division may,\nimmediately following placement or commitment, be remanded to an\nappropriate detention facility.\n (b) The office of children and family services shall admit a child\nplaced with the office to a facility of the office within fifteen days\nof the date of the order of placement with the office and shall admit a\njuvenile offender, youthful offender or adolescent offender committed to\nthe office to a facility of the office within ten days of the date of\nthe order of commitment to the office, except as provided in section\nfive hundred seven-b of this article.\n 5. Consistent with other provisions of law, in the discretion of the\ncommissioner of the office of children and family services, youth placed\nwithin the office under the family court act who attain the age of\neighteen while in custody of the office and who are not required to\nremain in the placement with the office as a result of a dispositional\norder of the family court may reside in a placement in an authorized\nagency or a non-secure facility until the age of twenty-one, provided\nthat such youth attend a full-time vocational or educational program and\nare likely to benefit from such program.\n