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GEORGIA CODE (Last Updated: August 20, 2013) |
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Title 42. PENAL INSTITUTIONS |
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Chapter 7. TREATMENT OF YOUTHFUL OFFENDERS |
| § 42-7-1. Short title |
| § 42-7-2. Definitions |
| § 42-7-3. Providing institutions and facilities |
| § 42-7-4. Studies and diagnoses; placement of youthful offender by department |
| § 42-7-5. Transfer |
| § 42-7-6. Notification of State Board of Pardons and Paroles |
| § 42-7-7. Adoption of policies and procedures |
| § 42-7-8. Court recommendation of treatment as youthful offender |
| § 42-7-9. Construction of chapter |
REFS & ANNOS
TITLE 42 Chapter 7 NOTE
CROSS REFERENCES. --Judicial proceedings involving juveniles, Ch. 11, T. 15. Disposition of deprived, delinquent, and unruly children, as those terms are defined in § 15-11-2, §§ 15-11-34 through 15-11-36. Powers and duties of Department of Human Resources regarding children and youth services, § 49-5-1 et seq.
EDITOR'S NOTES. --Ga. L. 1985, p. 420, effective March 27, 1985, repealed the Code sections formerly codified at this chapter and enacted the current chapter. The former chapter, which also dealt with treatment of youthful offenders, consisted of Code Sections 42-7-1 through 42-7-16. The former chapter also created the Youthful Offender Division of the Department of Offender Rehabilitation (now Department of Corrections) and described that former division's powers and duties. While several provisions of Code sections of the former chapter were carried forward into the new chapter (see historical citations in this chapter), the following Acts formed the basis of Code sections which were not carried forward: Ga. L. 1972, p. 592, §§ 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 13, 14; Ga. L. 1975, p. 900, §§ 2, 7; Ga. L. 1978, p. 922, § 1; Ga. L. 1985, p. 149, § 42; Ga. L. 1985, p. 283, § 1.
Section 2 of Ga. L. 1985, p. 420, not codified by the General Assembly, provided that that Act would not operate to deny any rights to any youthful offender currently on probation pursuant to the "Georgia Youthful Offender Act of 1972," but any such person would remain on probation subject to any conditions as previously specified.
Ga. L. 1998, p. 270, § 13, not codified by the General Assembly, provides: "The General Assembly recognizes that criminal street gangs have succeeded at times in maintaining their structure, organization, and discipline in penal institutions and have continued to conduct criminal activities while incarcerated. Therefore, the General Assembly requests and encourages state and local officials with responsibility for the operation of adult and juvenile penal institutions and related facilities to develop policies and procedures which will identify members of criminal street gangs and, where necessary, to separate members and associates of the same criminal street gang in order that such gang members cannot maintain the gang's structure, organization, and discipline and will have a more difficult time in conducting criminal activities while incarcerated in this state."
JUDICIAL DECISIONS
EFFECT OF PREVIOUS CONVICTION UNDER THIS CHAPTER. --This chapter contains significantly different provisions than the First Offender Act (OCGA § 42-8-60 et seq.); specifically, this chapter does not authorize the discharge of a felony conviction and such conviction under this chapter may serve as a predicate for sentencing under OCGA § 17-10-7. Lazenby v. State, 221 Ga. App. 148, 470 S.E.2d 526 (1996).
OPINIONS OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL
EDITOR'S NOTES. --The following opinions were rendered under former Chapter 7 of this title, relating to the powers and duties of the former Youthful Offender Division of the Department of Offender Rehabilitation (now Department of Corrections). See the editor's notes under the Chapter 7 heading.
CLASSIFICATION AS HABITUAL OFFENDER FOR SENTENCING PURPOSES. --An inmate sentenced under this chapter may also be classified as a habitual offender under § 42-5-100 for purposes of sentence computation. Further, in the rare case where a youthful offender is also classified as a habitual offender, earned-time adjustment for habitual offenders should be used in computing offender's unconditional release date. 1981 Op. Att'y Gen. No. 81-62.
EFFECT OF REVOCATION OF OFFENDER'S CONDITIONAL RELEASE. --When a youthful offender's conditional release is revoked, and he is not returned to the youthful offender program, his status as a youthful offender is terminated and his sentence should be computed on the basis of six years or the maximum term for the offense, if less than six years. 1975 Op. Att'y Gen. No. 75-127.
WHEN A COMBINATION OF YOUTHFUL OFFENDER AND STANDARD SENTENCES OCCUR, the Youthful Offender Division may not approve a conditional or unconditional release for the described youthful offender until his concurrent standard sentence has expired; nevertheless, he could be assigned to an institution maintained primarily for youthful offenders during the entire period for which the board is charged with custody over him, since Ga. L. 1956, p. 161 (see § 42-5-50(b) and § 42-5-51(b), (d)) empowers the board to assign inmates to any institution within its system, and subsection (c) of former § 42-7-8 authorizes the director (now commissioner) of corrections to segregate youthful offenders from other prisoners. 1973 Op. Att'y Gen. No. 73-82.
THE NOTION OF A JUDICIALLY IMPOSED MINIMUM TERM OF CONFINEMENT does not comport with the statutory scheme of this chapter. 1973 Op. Att'y Gen. No. 73-36.
EARNING GOOD-TIME CREDIT. --Youthful offenders can earn good-time credit toward the reduction of their period of confinement to the extent provided in this chapter. 1975 Op. Att'y Gen. No. 75-50.
RESEARCH REFERENCES
ALR. --Sex discrimination in treatment of jail or prison inmates, 12 ALR4th 1219.
EDITOR'S NOTES. --Ga. L. 1985, p. 420, effective March 27, 1985, repealed the Code sections formerly codified at this chapter and enacted the current chapter. The former chapter, which also dealt with treatment of youthful offenders, consisted of Code Sections 42-7-1 through 42-7-16. The former chapter also created the Youthful Offender Division of the Department of Offender Rehabilitation (now Department of Corrections) and described that former division's powers and duties. While several provisions of Code sections of the former chapter were carried forward into the new chapter (see historical citations in this chapter), the following Acts formed the basis of Code sections which were not carried forward: Ga. L. 1972, p. 592, §§ 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 13, 14; Ga. L. 1975, p. 900, §§ 2, 7; Ga. L. 1978, p. 922, § 1; Ga. L. 1985, p. 149, § 42; Ga. L. 1985, p. 283, § 1.
Section 2 of Ga. L. 1985, p. 420, not codified by the General Assembly, provided that that Act would not operate to deny any rights to any youthful offender currently on probation pursuant to the "Georgia Youthful Offender Act of 1972," but any such person would remain on probation subject to any conditions as previously specified.
Ga. L. 1998, p. 270, § 13, not codified by the General Assembly, provides: "The General Assembly recognizes that criminal street gangs have succeeded at times in maintaining their structure, organization, and discipline in penal institutions and have continued to conduct criminal activities while incarcerated. Therefore, the General Assembly requests and encourages state and local officials with responsibility for the operation of adult and juvenile penal institutions and related facilities to develop policies and procedures which will identify members of criminal street gangs and, where necessary, to separate members and associates of the same criminal street gang in order that such gang members cannot maintain the gang's structure, organization, and discipline and will have a more difficult time in conducting criminal activities while incarcerated in this state."
JUDICIAL DECISIONS
EFFECT OF PREVIOUS CONVICTION UNDER THIS CHAPTER. --This chapter contains significantly different provisions than the First Offender Act (OCGA § 42-8-60 et seq.); specifically, this chapter does not authorize the discharge of a felony conviction and such conviction under this chapter may serve as a predicate for sentencing under OCGA § 17-10-7. Lazenby v. State, 221 Ga. App. 148, 470 S.E.2d 526 (1996).
OPINIONS OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL
EDITOR'S NOTES. --The following opinions were rendered under former Chapter 7 of this title, relating to the powers and duties of the former Youthful Offender Division of the Department of Offender Rehabilitation (now Department of Corrections). See the editor's notes under the Chapter 7 heading.
CLASSIFICATION AS HABITUAL OFFENDER FOR SENTENCING PURPOSES. --An inmate sentenced under this chapter may also be classified as a habitual offender under § 42-5-100 for purposes of sentence computation. Further, in the rare case where a youthful offender is also classified as a habitual offender, earned-time adjustment for habitual offenders should be used in computing offender's unconditional release date. 1981 Op. Att'y Gen. No. 81-62.
EFFECT OF REVOCATION OF OFFENDER'S CONDITIONAL RELEASE. --When a youthful offender's conditional release is revoked, and he is not returned to the youthful offender program, his status as a youthful offender is terminated and his sentence should be computed on the basis of six years or the maximum term for the offense, if less than six years. 1975 Op. Att'y Gen. No. 75-127.
WHEN A COMBINATION OF YOUTHFUL OFFENDER AND STANDARD SENTENCES OCCUR, the Youthful Offender Division may not approve a conditional or unconditional release for the described youthful offender until his concurrent standard sentence has expired; nevertheless, he could be assigned to an institution maintained primarily for youthful offenders during the entire period for which the board is charged with custody over him, since Ga. L. 1956, p. 161 (see § 42-5-50(b) and § 42-5-51(b), (d)) empowers the board to assign inmates to any institution within its system, and subsection (c) of former § 42-7-8 authorizes the director (now commissioner) of corrections to segregate youthful offenders from other prisoners. 1973 Op. Att'y Gen. No. 73-82.
THE NOTION OF A JUDICIALLY IMPOSED MINIMUM TERM OF CONFINEMENT does not comport with the statutory scheme of this chapter. 1973 Op. Att'y Gen. No. 73-36.
EARNING GOOD-TIME CREDIT. --Youthful offenders can earn good-time credit toward the reduction of their period of confinement to the extent provided in this chapter. 1975 Op. Att'y Gen. No. 75-50.
RESEARCH REFERENCES
ALR. --Sex discrimination in treatment of jail or prison inmates, 12 ALR4th 1219.