Government’s motion to proceed against juvenile as adult tolls statutory thirty-day speedy trial period

JUVENILE United States v. A, No. 04-2284, ___ F.3d ___ (10th Cir. Feb. 3, 2006)(New Mexico). Appeal by sixteen year old defendant of transfer of case to federal district court to be tried as adult for methamphetamine distribution. HELD: (1) Government’s motion to transfer case from juvenile proceeding to trial as adult tolls thirty-day speedy trial period provided by 18 U.S.C. § 5036. (2) Eighty-four day delay in resolving government’s transfer motion was not unreasonable because part of delay was result of defendant’s parents not receiving notice of hearing on transfer motion as required by 18 U.S.C. § 5032. (3) Under 18 U.S.C. § 5032, government need only expend good faith effort to locate all juvenile’s records for court. It is unreasonable to require government to check every juvenile court record in country, even those with no connection to juvenile defendant. (4) Defendant’s previous New Mexico juvenile delinquency adjudication satisfied 18 U.S.C. § 5032’s requirement that juvenile have been “found guilty” of certain offenses that would support mandatory transfer to district court to be tried as adult. (5) In juvenile transfer proceeding, government bears burden of proving by preponderance of evidence that juvenile should be tried as an adult. Read the opinion here.