Section 15-11-630. (Effective January 1, 2014) Juvenile traffic offenses; summons; hearings; penalties; transfers; providing information to Department of Driver Services

   (a) A juvenile traffic offense consists of a violation by a child of:

   (1) A law or local ordinance governing the operation of a moving motor vehicle upon the streets or highways of this state or upon the waterways within or adjoining this state; or

   (2) Any other motor vehicle traffic law or local ordinance if a child is taken into custody and detained for its violation or is transferred to the juvenile court by the court hearing the charge.

(b) The following offenses shall be acts of delinquency and shall not be handled as juvenile traffic offenses: aggressive driving, reckless driving, a four-point speeding offense, homicide by vehicle, manslaughter resulting from the operation of a vehicle, any felony in the commission of which a motor vehicle is used, racing on highways and streets, using a motor vehicle in fleeing or attempting to elude an officer, fraudulent or fictitious use of a driver's license, hit and run or leaving the scene of an accident, driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs, and any offense committed by an unlicensed driver under 16 years of age.

(c) A juvenile traffic offense shall not be an act of delinquency unless the case is transferred to the delinquency calendar.

(d) The summons, notice to appear, or other designation of a citation accusing a child of committing a juvenile traffic offense constitutes the commencement of the proceedings in the court of the county in which the alleged violation occurred and serves in place of a summons and petition under this article. These cases shall be filed and heard separately from other proceedings of the court. If a child is taken into custody on the charge, Code Sections 15-11-503 and 15-11-505 shall apply. If a child is, or after commencement of the proceedings becomes, a resident of another county of this state, the court in the county where the alleged traffic offense occurred may retain jurisdiction over the entire case.

(e) The court shall fix a time for a hearing and shall give reasonable notice thereof to the child accused of committing a juvenile traffic offense and, if his or her address is known, to his or her parent, guardian, or legal custodian. If the accusation made in the summons, notice to appear, or other designation of a citation is denied, a hearing shall be held at which the parties shall have the right to subpoena witnesses, present evidence, cross-examine witnesses, and appear with their attorney. The hearing shall be open to the public.

(f) If the court finds on the admission of a child or upon the evidence that a child committed the offense charged, it may make one or more of the following orders:

   (1) Reprimand, counsel, or warn such child and his or her parent, guardian, or legal custodian; provided, however, that this disposition order shall not be available for any act of delinquency;

   (2) As a matter of supervised or unsupervised probation, order the Department of Driver Services to suspend such child's privilege to drive under stated conditions and limitations for a period not to exceed 12 months;

   (3) Require such child to attend a traffic school approved by the Department of Driver Services or a substance abuse clinic or program approved by either DBHDD or the Council of Juvenile Court Judges for a reasonable period of time;

   (4) Assess a fine and order such child to remit to the general fund of the county a sum not exceeding the maximum applicable to an adult for a like offense. The fine shall be subject to all additions and penalties as specified under this title and Title 47;

   (5) Require such child to participate in a program of community service as specified by the court;

   (6) Impose any sanction authorized by Code Section 15-11-442 or 15-11-601; or

   (7) Place such child on probation subject to the conditions and limitations imposed by Title 40 governing probation granted to adults for like offenses, provided that such probation shall be supervised by the court or shall be unsupervised probation.

(g) In lieu of the orders provided by subsection (f) of this Code section, if the evidence warrants, the court may transfer the case to the delinquency calendar of the court and direct the filing and service of a summons and delinquency petition.

(h) Upon finding that a child has committed a juvenile traffic offense or an act of delinquency which would be a violation of Title 40 if committed by an adult, the court shall forward, within ten days, a report of the final adjudication and disposition of the charge to the Department of Driver Services; provided, however, that this procedure shall not be applicable to those cases which have been dismissed or in which a child and his or her parent, guardian, or legal custodian have been reprimanded, counseled, or warned by the court. The Department of Driver Services shall record the adjudication and disposition of the offense on such child's permanent record, and such adjudication and disposition shall be deemed a conviction for the purpose of suspending or revoking such child's driver's license. Such record shall also be available to law enforcement agencies and courts as are the permanent traffic records of adults.

Code 1981, § 15-11-630, enacted by Ga. L. 2013, p. 294, § 1-1/HB 242.