Loading chat...
GA SB364
Bill
Status
Passed
4/28/2014
Primary Sponsor
Jesse Stone
Click for details
AI Summary
- Revises and corrects errors, cross-references, and conflicting provisions in Georgia's Juvenile Code (Title 15, Chapter 11), as recommended by the Georgia Council on Criminal Justice Reform
- Expands the definition of "aggravated circumstances" for parental rights cases to include murder or voluntary manslaughter of another child and assault resulting in serious bodily injury, and broadens "abandoned an infant" to "abandoned a child"
- Changes custody hearing timeframes for children in need of services, reducing continued custody hearing deadlines from 72 hours to 24 hours for children in secure/nonsecure facilities and from 5 days to 72 hours for children in foster care, and requires the court to mandate guardian ad litem appointment in termination of parental rights proceedings
- Clarifies that sentences for trafficking in cocaine, illegal drugs, marijuana, methamphetamine, or ecstasy cannot be reduced by earned time, early release, or parole, except that defendants are eligible for transitional center or work release programs during their final year of incarceration, applying retroactively to sentences imposed on or after July 1, 2013
- Establishes a process for objecting to testamentary guardian nominations, requiring notice to the minor child's adult relatives and allowing objections within 10 days, with an expedited hearing within 30 days where the objecting party must prove unfitness by clear and convincing evidence (effective January 1, 2015)
Legislative Description
Juvenile Code; revise and correct errors or omissions
Last Action
Effective Date
4/28/2014
Full Bill Text
No bill text available