2005 North Carolina Code - General Statutes § 7B-2515. Notification of extended commitment; plan of treatment.

§ 7B‑2515.  Notification of extended commitment; plan of treatment.

(a)       In determining whether a juvenile should be released before the juvenile's 18th birthday, the Department shall consider the protection of the public and the likelihood that continued placement will lead to further rehabilitation. If the Department does not intend to release the juvenile prior to the juvenile's eighteenth birthday, or if the Department determines that the juvenile's commitment should be continued beyond the maximum commitment period as set forth in G.S. 7B‑2513(a), the Department shall notify the juvenile and the juvenile's parent, guardian, or custodian in writing at least 30 days in advance of the juvenile's eighteenth birthday or the end of the maximum commitment period, of the additional specific commitment period proposed by the Department, the basis for extending the commitment period, and the plan for future care or treatment.

(b)       The Department shall modify the plan of care or treatment developed pursuant to G.S. 7B‑2513(f) to specify (i) the specific goals and outcomes that require additional time for care or treatment of the juvenile; (ii) the specific course of treatment or care that will be implemented to achieve the established goals and outcomes; and (iii) the efforts that will be taken to assist the juvenile's family in creating an environment that will increase the likelihood that the efforts to treat and rehabilitate the juvenile will be successful upon release. If appropriate, the Department may place the juvenile in a setting other than a youth development center.

(c)       The juvenile and the juvenile's parent, guardian, or custodian may request a review by the court of the Department's decision to extend the juvenile's commitment beyond the juvenile's eighteenth birthday or maximum commitment period, in which case the court shall conduct a review hearing. The court may modify the Department's decision and the juvenile's maximum commitment period. If the juvenile or the juvenile's parent, guardian, or custodian does not request a review of the Department's decision, the Department's decision shall become the juvenile's new maximum commitment period. (1998‑202, s. 6; 1998‑217, s. 57(1); 2000‑137, s. 3; 2001‑95, s. 5.)