Where a juvenile is still under a protective disposition and is then sentenced to imprisonment, detention or short-term detention, which is carried out first?
General information · Not legal advice
Material to check
In a practice file of this kind, we read the juvenile case record to see whether a protective disposition was made and is still being carried out, and the certified copy of the criminal judgment to see which of the three custodial sentences the juvenile has received.
These are types of material to look for, not evidence already verified by PRO SE.
Where readings differ
One reading takes the priority rule at face value: where a protective disposition is 'continuing' and the juvenile has been sentenced to imprisonment, detention or short-term detention, the sentence must be carried out first, ahead of the protective disposition, and the provision names only these three custodial sentences.
Another reading marks what the provision leaves out: it states no rule on whether the ongoing protective disposition continues, lapses or is revoked while the sentence is served, and it names no actor to order the priority, so the file has to show which authority acted and how the disposition stood.
Your judgment
Once the custodial sentence has been carried out, what in the file could show whether the protective disposition is still to be carried out?
PRO SE does not make this decision or keep a case record on this public site.When to reconsider
We look at this again if the Juvenile Act is amended to name an actor or to state what becomes of a continuing protective disposition, or if a court decision clarifies how the priority rule applies.