2007 California Welfare and Institutions Code Article 2.5. Youthful Offender Parole Board

CA Codes (wic:1716-1726)

1716.  Commencing July 1, 2005, any reference to the Youth Authority
Board refers to the Board of Parole Hearings. As of that date, the
Youth Authority Board is abolished.



1719.  (a) Commencing July 1, 2005, the following powers and duties
shall be exercised and performed by the Board of Parole Hearings:
discharges of commitment, orders to parole and conditions thereof,
revocation or suspension of parole, and disciplinary appeals.
   (b) Any ward may appeal an adjustment to his or her parole
consideration date to a panel comprised of at least two
commissioners.
   (c) The following powers and duties shall be exercised and
performed by the Division of Juvenile Facilities:  return of persons
to the court of commitment for redisposition by the court,
determination of offense category, setting of parole consideration
dates, conducting annual reviews, treatment program orders,
institution placements, furlough placements, return of nonresident
persons to the jurisdiction of the state of legal residence,
disciplinary decisionmaking, and referrals pursuant to Section 1800.

   (d) The department shall promulgate policies and regulations
implementing a departmentwide system of graduated sanctions for
addressing ward disciplinary matters. The disciplinary decisionmaking
system shall be employed as the disciplinary system in facilities
under the jurisdiction of the Division of Juvenile Facilities, and
shall provide a framework for handling disciplinary matters in a
manner that is consistent, timely, proportionate, and ensures the due
process rights of wards. The department shall develop and implement
a system of graduated sanctions which distinguishes between minor,
intermediate, and serious misconduct. The department may extend a
ward's parole consideration date, subject to appeal pursuant to
subdivision (b), from one to not more than 12 months, inclusive, for
a sustained serious misconduct violation if all other sanctioning
options have been considered and determined to be unsuitable in light
of the ward's previous case history and the circumstances of the
misconduct. In any case in which a parole consideration date has been
extended, the disposition report shall clearly state the reasons for
the extension. The length of any parole consideration date extension
shall be based on the seriousness of the misconduct, the ward's
prior disciplinary history, the ward's progress toward treatment
objectives, the ward's earned program credits, and any extenuating or
mitigating circumstances. The department shall promulgate
regulations to implement a table of sanctions to be used in
determining parole consideration date extensions. The department also
may promulgate regulations to establish a process for granting wards
who have successfully responded to disciplinary sanctions a
reduction of up to 50 percent of any time acquired for disciplinary
matters.


1720.  (a) The case of each ward shall be reviewed by the department
within 45 days of arrival at the department, and at other times as
is necessary to meet the powers or duties of the board.
   (b) The Division of Juvenile Facilities shall periodically review
the case of each ward for the purpose of determining whether existing
orders and dispositions in individual cases should be modified or
continued in force.  These reviews shall be made as frequently as the
department considers desirable and shall be made with respect to
each ward at intervals not exceeding one year.
   (c) The ward shall be entitled to notice if his or her annual
review is delayed beyond one year after the previous annual review
hearing. The ward shall be informed of the reason for the delay and
of the date the review hearing is to be held.
   (d) Failure of the division to review the case of a ward within 15
months of a previous review shall not of itself entitle the ward to
discharge from the control of the division but shall entitle him or
her to petition the superior court of the county from which he or she
was committed for an order of discharge, and the court shall
discharge him or her unless the court is satisfied as to the need for
further control.
   (e) Reviews conducted by the division pursuant to this section
shall be written and shall include, but not be limited to, the
following: verification of the treatment or program goals and orders
for the ward to ensure the ward is receiving treatment and
programming that is narrowly tailored to address the correctional
treatment needs of the ward and is being provided in a timely manner
that is designed to meet the parole consideration date set for the
ward; an assessment of the ward's adjustment and responsiveness to
treatment, programming, and custody; a review of the ward's
disciplinary history and response to disciplinary sanctions; an
updated individualized treatment plan for the ward that makes
adjustments based on the review required by this subdivision; an
estimated timeframe for the ward's commencement and completion of the
treatment programs or services; and a review of any additional
information relevant to the ward's progress.
   (f) The division shall provide copies of the reviews prepared
pursuant to this section to the court and the probation department of
the committing county.



1723.  (a)  Every order granting or revoking parole or issuing final
discharges to any person under the jurisdiction of the division
shall be made by the board or its designee, as authorized by this
article.
   (b) All other powers conferred to the board concerning wards under
the jurisdiction of the division may be exercised through
subordinates or delegated to the division under rules established by
the board. Any person subjected to an order of those subordinates or
of the division pursuant to that delegation may petition the board
for review. The board may review those orders under appropriate rules
and regulations.
   (c) All board designees shall be subject to the training required
pursuant to Section 5075.6 of the Penal Code.



1725.   (a) Commencing July 1, 2005, the Board of Parole Hearings
shall succeed, and shall exercise and perform all powers and duties
previously granted to, exercised by, and imposed upon the Youthful
Offender Parole Board and Youth Authority Board, as authorized by
this article. The Youthful Offender Parole Board and Youth Authority
Board are abolished.
   (b) Commencing January 1, 2007, all commissioners appointed and
trained to hear juvenile parole matters, together with their duties
prescribed by law as functions of the Board of Parole Hearings
concerning wards under the jurisdiction of the Department of
Corrections and Rehabilitation, are transferred to the Chief Deputy
Secretary for Juvenile Justice.


1726.  (a) Employees of the Department of the Youth Authority who
are needed to support the functions of the Youth Authority Board
shall be selected and appointed pursuant to the State Civil Service
Act.
   (b) All officers and employees of the Youthful Offender Parole
Board who on January 1, 2004, are serving in the state civil service,
other than as temporary employees, as part of the direct staff of
the Youthful Offender Parole Board shall be transferred to the
Department of the Youth Authority and subject to retention pursuant
to Section 19050.9 of the Government Code.