Statutes > Illinois Statutes > CHAPTER 705 COURTS > 705 ILCS 405/ Juvenile Court Act of 1987. > Article I - General Provisions

Article I - General Provisions


      (705 ILCS 405/Art. I heading)
ARTICLE I. GENERAL PROVISIONS

    (705 ILCS 405/1‑1) (from Ch. 37, par. 801‑1)
    Sec. 1‑1. Short title. This Act shall be known and may be cited as the Juvenile Court Act of 1987.
(Source: P.A. 85‑601.)

    (705 ILCS 405/1‑2) (from Ch. 37, par. 801‑2)
    Sec. 1‑2. Purpose and policy.
    (1) The purpose of this Act is to secure for each minor subject hereto such care and guidance, preferably in his or her own home, as will serve the safety and moral, emotional, mental, and physical welfare of the minor and the best interests of the community; to preserve and strengthen the minor's family ties whenever possible, removing him or her from the custody of his or her parents only when his or her safety or welfare or the protection of the public cannot be adequately safeguarded without removal; if the child is removed from the custody of his or her parent, the Department of Children and Family Services immediately shall consider concurrent planning, as described in Section 5 of the Children and Family Services Act so that permanency may occur at the earliest opportunity; consideration should be given so that if reunification fails or is delayed, the placement made is the best available placement to provide permanency for the child; and, when the minor is removed from his or her own family, to secure for him or her custody, care and discipline as nearly as possible equivalent to that which should be given by his or her parents, and in cases where it should and can properly be done to place the minor in a family home so that he or she may become a member of the family by legal adoption or otherwise. Provided that a ground for unfitness under the Adoption Act can be met, it may be appropriate to expedite termination of parental rights:
        (a) when reasonable efforts are inappropriate, or
     have been provided and were unsuccessful, and there are aggravating circumstances including, but not limited to, those cases in which (i) the child or another child of that child's parent was (A) abandoned, (B) tortured, or (C) chronically abused or (ii) the parent is criminally convicted of (A) first degree murder or second degree murder of any child, (B) attempt or conspiracy to commit first degree murder or second degree murder of any child, (C) solicitation to commit murder, solicitation to commit murder for hire, solicitation to commit second degree murder of any child, or aggravated assault in violation of subdivision (a)(13) of Section 12‑2 of the Criminal Code of 1961, or (D) aggravated criminal sexual assault in violation of Section 12‑14(b)(1) of the Criminal Code of 1961; or
        (b) when the parental rights of a parent with
     respect to another child of the parent have been involuntarily terminated; or
        (c) in those extreme cases in which the parent's
     incapacity to care for the child, combined with an extremely poor prognosis for treatment or rehabilitation, justifies expedited termination of parental rights.
    (2) In all proceedings under this Act the court may direct the course thereof so as promptly to ascertain the jurisdictional facts and fully to gather information bearing upon the current condition and future welfare of persons subject to this Act. This Act shall be administered in a spirit of humane concern, not only for the rights of the parties, but also for the fears and the limits of understanding of all who appear before the court.
    (3) In all procedures under this Act, the following shall apply:
        (a) The procedural rights assured to the minor shall
     be the rights of adults unless specifically precluded by laws which enhance the protection of such minors.
        (b) Every child has a right to services necessary to
     his or her safety and proper development, including health, education and social services.
        (c) The parents' right to the custody of their child
     shall not prevail when the court determines that it is contrary to the health, safety, and best interests of the child.
    (4) This Act shall be liberally construed to carry out the foregoing purpose and policy.
(Source: P.A. 89‑704, eff. 8‑16‑97 (changed from 1‑1‑98 by P.A. 90‑443); 90‑27, eff. 1‑1‑98; 90‑28, eff. 1‑1‑98; 90‑443, eff. 8‑16‑97; 90‑608, eff. 6‑30‑98.)

    (705 ILCS 405/1‑3)(from Ch. 37, par. 801‑3)
    Sec. 1‑3. Definitions. Terms used in this Act, unless the context otherwise requires, have the following meanings ascribed to them:
    (1) "Adjudicatory hearing" means a hearing to determine whether the allegations of a petition under Section 2‑13, 3‑15 or 4‑12 that a minor under 18 years of age is abused, neglected or dependent, or requires authoritative intervention, or addicted, respectively, are supported by a preponderance of the evidence or whether the allegations of a petition under Section 5‑520 that a minor is delinquent are proved beyond a reasonable doubt.
    (2) "Adult" means a person 21 years of age or older.
    (3) "Agency" means a public or private child care facility legally authorized or licensed by this State for placement or institutional care or for both placement and institutional care.
    (4) "Association" means any organization, public or private, engaged in welfare functions which include services to or on behalf of children but does not include "agency" as herein defined.
    (4.05) Whenever a "best interest" determination is required, the following factors shall be considered in the context of the child's age and developmental needs:
        (a) the physical safety and welfare of the child,
     including food, shelter, health, and clothing;
        (b) the development of the child's identity;
        (c) the child's background and ties, including
     familial, cultural, and religious;
        (d) the child's sense of attachments, including:
            (i) where the child actually feels love,
         attachment, and a sense of being valued (as opposed to where adults believe the child should feel such love, attachment, and a sense of being valued);
            (ii) the child's sense of security;
            (iii) the child's sense of familiarity;
            (iv) continuity of affection for the child;
            (v) the least disruptive placement alternative
         for the child;
        (e) the child's wishes and long‑term goals;
        (f) the child's community ties, including church,
     school, and friends;
        (g) the child's need for permanence which includes
     the child's need for stability and continuity of relationships with parent figures and with siblings and other relatives;
        (h) the uniqueness of every family and child;
        (i) the risks attendant to entering and being in
     substitute care; and
        (j) the preferences of the persons available to care
     for the child.
    (4.1) "Chronic truant" shall have the definition ascribed to it in Section 26‑2a of the School Code.
    (5) "Court" means the circuit court in a session or division assigned to hear proceedings under this Act.
    (6) "Dispositional hearing" means a hearing to determine whether a minor should be adjudged to be a ward of the court, and to determine what order of disposition should be made in respect to a minor adjudged to be a ward of the court.
    (7) "Emancipated minor" means any minor 16 years of age or over who has been completely or partially emancipated under the Emancipation of Minors Act or under this Act.
    (8) "Guardianship of the person" of a minor means the duty and authority to act in the best interests of the minor, subject to residual parental rights and responsibilities, to make important decisions in matters having a permanent effect on the life and development of the minor and to be concerned with his or her general welfare. It includes but is not necessarily limited to:
        (a) the authority to consent to marriage, to
     enlistment in the armed forces of the United States, or to a major medical, psychiatric, and surgical treatment; to represent the minor in legal actions; and to make other decisions of substantial legal significance concerning the minor;
        (b) the authority and duty of reasonable visitation,
     except to the extent that these have been limited in the best interests of the minor by court order;
        (c) the rights and responsibilities of legal custody
     except where legal custody has been vested in another person or agency; and
        (d) the power to consent to the adoption of the
     minor, but only if expressly conferred on the guardian in accordance with Section 2‑29, 3‑30, or 4‑27.
    (9) "Legal custody" means the relationship created by an order of court in the best interests of the minor which imposes on the custodian the responsibility of physical possession of a minor and the duty to protect, train and discipline him and to provide him with food, shelter, education and ordinary medical care, except as these are limited by residual parental rights and responsibilities and the rights and responsibilities of the guardian of the person, if any.
    (9.1) "Mentally capable adult relative" means a person 21 years of age or older who is not suffering from a mental illness that prevents him or her from providing the care necessary to safeguard the physical safety and welfare of a minor who is left in that person's care by the parent or parents or other person responsible for the minor's welfare.
    (10) "Minor" means a person under the age of 21 years subject to this Act.
    (11) "Parent" means the father or mother of a child and includes any adoptive parent. It also includes a man (i) whose paternity is presumed or has been established under the law of this or another jurisdiction or (ii) who has registered with the Putative Father Registry in accordance with Section 12.1 of the Adoption Act and whose paternity has not been ruled out under the law of this or another jurisdiction. It does not include a parent whose rights in respect to the minor have been terminated in any manner provided by law.
    (11.1) "Permanency goal" means a goal set by the court as defined in subdivision (2) of Section 2‑28.
    (11.2) "Permanency hearing" means a hearing to set the permanency goal and to review and determine (i) the appropriateness of the services contained in the plan and whether those services have been provided, (ii) whether reasonable efforts have been made by all the parties to the service plan to achieve the goal, and (iii) whether the plan and goal have been achieved.
    (12) "Petition" means the petition provided for in Section 2‑13, 3‑15, 4‑12 or 5‑520, including any supplemental petitions thereunder in Section 3‑15, 4‑12 or 5‑520.
    (12.1) "Physically capable adult relative" means a person 21 years of age or older who does not have a severe physical disability or medical condition, or is not suffering from alcoholism or drug addiction, that prevents him or her from providing the care necessary to safeguard the physical safety and welfare of a minor who is left in that person's care by the parent or parents or other person responsible for the minor's welfare.
    (13) "Residual parental rights and responsibilities" means those rights and responsibilities remaining with the parent after the transfer of legal custody or guardianship of the person, including, but not necessarily limited to, the right to reasonable visitation (which may be limited by the court in the best interests of the minor as provided in subsection (8)(b) of this Section), the right to consent to adoption, the right to determine the minor's religious affiliation, and the responsibility for his support.
    (14) "Shelter" means the temporary care of a minor in physically unrestricting facilities pending court disposition or execution of court order for placement.
    (15) "Station adjustment" means the informal handling of an alleged offender by a juvenile police officer.
    (16) "Ward of the court" means a minor who is so adjudged under Section 2‑22, 3‑23, 4‑20 or 5‑705, after a finding of the requisite jurisdictional facts, and thus is subject to the dispositional powers of the court under this Act.
    (17) "Juvenile police officer" means a sworn police officer who has completed a Basic Recruit Training Course, has been assigned to the position of juvenile police officer by his or her chief law enforcement officer and has completed the necessary juvenile officers training as prescribed by the Illinois Law Enforcement Training Standards Board, or in the case of a State police officer, juvenile officer training approved by the Director of the Department of State Police.
    (18) "Secure child care facility" means any child care facility licensed by the Department of Children and Family Services to provide secure living arrangements for children under 18 years of age who are subject to placement in facilities under the Children and Family Services Act and who are not subject to placement in facilities for whom standards are established by the Department of Corrections under Section 3‑15‑2 of the Unified Code of Corrections. "Secure child care facility" also means a facility that is designed and operated to ensure that all entrances and exits from the facility, a building, or a distinct part of the building are under the exclusive control of the staff of the facility, whether or not the child has the freedom of movement within the perimeter of the facility, building, or distinct part of the building.
(Source: P.A. 95‑331, eff. 8‑21‑07; 96‑168, eff. 8‑10‑09.)

    (705 ILCS 405/1‑4) (from Ch. 37, par. 801‑4)
    Sec. 1‑4. Limitations of scope of Act. Nothing in this Act shall be construed to give: (a) any guardian appointed hereunder the guardianship of the estate of the minor or to change the age of minority for any purpose other than those expressly stated in this Act; or (b) any court jurisdiction, except as provided in Sections 2‑7, 3‑6, 3‑9, 4‑6 and 5‑410, over any minor solely on the basis of the minor's (i) misbehavior which does not violate any federal or state law or municipal ordinance, (ii) refusal to obey the orders or directions of a parent, guardian or custodian, (iii) absence from home without the consent of his or her parent, guardian or custodian, or (iv) truancy, until efforts and procedures to address and resolve such actions by a law enforcement officer during a period of limited custody, by crisis intervention services under Section 3‑5, and by alternative voluntary residential placement or other disposition as provided by Section 3‑6 have been exhausted without correcting such actions.
(Source: P.A. 91‑357, eff. 7‑29‑99.)

    (705 ILCS 405/1‑4.1) (from Ch. 37, par. 801‑4.1)
    Sec. 1‑4.1. Except for minors accused of violation of an order of the court, any minor accused of any act under federal or State law, or a municipal ordinance that would not be illegal if committed by an adult, cannot be placed in a jail, municipal lockup, detention center or secure correctional facility. Confinement in a county jail of a minor accused of a violation of an order of the court, or of a minor for whom there is reasonable cause to believe that the minor is a person described in subsection (3) of Section 5‑105, shall be in accordance with the restrictions set forth in Sections 5‑410 and 5‑501 of this Act.
(Source: P.A. 89‑656, eff. 1‑1‑97; 90‑590, eff. 1‑1‑99.)

    (705 ILCS 405/1‑5)(from Ch. 37, par. 801‑5)
    Sec. 1‑5. Rights of parties to proceedings.
    (1) Except as provided in this Section and paragraph (2) of Sections 2‑22, 3‑23, 4‑20, 5‑610 or 5‑705, the minor who is the subject of the proceeding and his parents, guardian, legal custodian or responsible relative who are parties respondent have the right to be present, to be heard, to present evidence material to the proceedings, to cross‑examine witnesses, to examine pertinent court files and records and also, although proceedings under this Act are not intended to be adversary in character, the right to be represented by counsel. At the request of any party financially unable to employ counsel, with the exception of a foster parent permitted to intervene under this Section, the court shall appoint the Public Defender or such other counsel as the case may require. Counsel appointed for the minor and any indigent party shall appear at all stages of the trial court proceeding, and such appointment shall continue through the permanency hearings and termination of parental rights proceedings subject to withdrawal or substitution pursuant to Supreme Court Rules or the Code of Civil Procedure. Following the dispositional hearing, the court may require appointed counsel, other than counsel for the minor or counsel for the guardian ad litem, to withdraw his or her appearance upon failure of the party for whom counsel was appointed under this Section to attend any subsequent proceedings.
    No hearing on any petition or motion filed under this Act may be commenced unless the minor who is the subject of the proceeding is represented by counsel. Notwithstanding the preceding sentence, if a guardian ad litem has been appointed for the minor under Section 2‑17 of this Act and the guardian ad litem is a licensed attorney at law of this State, or in the event that a court appointed special advocate has been appointed as guardian ad litem and counsel has been appointed to represent the court appointed special advocate, the court may not require the appointment of counsel to represent the minor unless the court finds that the minor's interests are in conflict with what the guardian ad litem determines to be in the best interest of the minor. Each adult respondent shall be furnished a written "Notice of Rights" at or before the first hearing at which he or she appears.
    (1.5) The Department shall maintain a system of response to inquiry made by parents or putative parents as to whether their child is under the custody or guardianship of the Department; and if so, the Department shall direct the parents or putative parents to the appropriate court of jurisdiction, including where inquiry may be made of the clerk of the court regarding the case number and the next scheduled court date of the minor's case. Effective notice and the means of accessing information shall be given to the public on a continuing basis by the Department.
    (2) (a) Though not appointed guardian or legal custodian or otherwise made a party to the proceeding, any current or previously appointed foster parent or relative caregiver, or representative of an agency or association interested in the minor has the right to be heard by the court, but does not thereby become a party to the proceeding.
    In addition to the foregoing right to be heard by the court, any current foster parent or relative caregiver of a minor and the agency designated by the court or the Department of Children and Family Services as custodian of the minor who is alleged to be or has been adjudicated an abused or neglected minor under Section 2‑3 or a dependent minor under Section 2‑4 of this Act has the right to and shall be given adequate notice at all stages of any hearing or proceeding under this Act.
    Any foster parent or relative caregiver who is denied his or her right to be heard under this Section may bring a mandamus action under Article XIV of the Code of Civil Procedure against the court or any public agency to enforce that right. The mandamus action may be brought immediately upon the denial of those rights but in no event later than 30 days after the foster parent has been denied the right to be heard.
    (b) If after an adjudication that a minor is abused or neglected as provided under Section 2‑21 of this Act and a motion has been made to restore the minor to any parent, guardian, or legal custodian found by the court to have caused the neglect or to have inflicted the abuse on the minor, a foster parent may file a motion to intervene in the proceeding for the sole purpose of requesting that the minor be placed with the foster parent, provided that the foster parent (i) is the current foster parent of the minor or (ii) has previously been a foster parent for the minor for one year or more, has a foster care license or is eligible for a license, and is not the subject of any findings of abuse or neglect of any child. The juvenile court may only enter orders placing a minor with a specific foster parent under this subsection (2)(b) and nothing in this Section shall be construed to confer any jurisdiction or authority on the juvenile court to issue any other orders requiring the appointed guardian or custodian of a minor to place the minor in a designated foster home or facility. This Section is not intended to encompass any matters that are within the scope or determinable under the administrative and appeal process established by rules of the Department of Children and Family Services under Section 5(o) of the Children and Family Services Act. Nothing in this Section shall relieve the court of its responsibility, under Section 2‑14(a) of this Act to act in a just and speedy manner to reunify families where it is the best interests of the minor and the child can be cared for at home without endangering the child's health or safety and, if reunification is not in the best interests of the minor, to find another permanent home for the minor. Nothing in this Section, or in any order issued by the court with respect to the placement of a minor with a foster parent, shall impair the ability of the Department of Children and Family Services, or anyone else authorized under Section 5 of the Abused and Neglected Child Reporting Act, to remove a minor from the home of a foster parent if the Department of Children and Family Services or the person removing the minor has reason to believe that the circumstances or conditions of the minor are such that continuing in the residence or care of the foster parent will jeopardize the child's health and safety or present an imminent risk of harm to that minor's life.
    (c) If a foster parent has had the minor who is the subject of the proceeding under Article II in his or her home for more than one year on or after July 3, 1994 and if the minor's placement is being terminated from that foster parent's home, that foster parent shall have standing and intervenor status except in those circumstances where the Department of Children and Family Services or anyone else authorized under Section 5 of the Abused and Neglected Child Reporting Act has removed the minor from the foster parent because of a reasonable belief that the circumstances or conditions of the minor are such that continuing in the residence or care of the foster parent will jeopardize the child's health or safety or presents an imminent risk of harm to the minor's life.
    (d) The court may grant standing to any foster parent if the court finds that it is in the best interest of the child for the foster parent to have standing and intervenor status.
    (3) Parties respondent are entitled to notice in compliance with Sections 2‑15 and 2‑16, 3‑17 and 3‑18, 4‑14 and 4‑15 or 5‑525 and 5‑530, as appropriate. At the first appearance before the court by the minor, his parents, guardian, custodian or responsible relative, the court shall explain the nature of the proceedings and inform the parties of their rights under the first 2 paragraphs of this Section.
    If the child is alleged to be abused, neglected or dependent, the court shall admonish the parents that if the court declares the child to be a ward of the court and awards custody or guardianship to the Department of Children and Family Services, the parents must cooperate with the Department of Children and Family Services, comply with the terms of the service plans, and correct the conditions that require the child to be in care, or risk termination of their parental rights.
    Upon an adjudication of wardship of the court under Sections 2‑22, 3‑23, 4‑20 or 5‑705, the court shall inform the parties of their right to appeal therefrom as well as from any other final judgment of the court.
    When the court finds that a child is an abused, neglected, or dependent minor under Section 2‑21, the court shall admonish the parents that the parents must cooperate with the Department of Children and Family Services, comply with the terms of the service plans, and correct the conditions that require the child to be in care, or risk termination of their parental rights.
    When the court declares a child to be a ward of the court and awards guardianship to the Department of Children and Family Services under Section 2‑22, the court shall admonish the parents, guardian, custodian, or responsible relative that the parents must cooperate with the Department of Children and Family Services, comply with the terms of the service plans, and correct the conditions that require the child to be in care, or risk termination of their parental rights.
    (4) No sanction may be applied against the minor who is the subject of the proceedings by reason of his refusal or failure to testify in the course of any hearing held prior to final adjudication under Section 2‑22, 3‑23, 4‑20 or 5‑705.
    (5) In the discretion of the court, the minor may be excluded from any part or parts of a dispositional hearing and, with the consent of the parent or parents, guardian, counsel or a guardian ad litem, from any part or parts of an adjudicatory hearing.
    (6) The general public except for the news media and the crime victim, as defined in Section 3 of the Rights of Crime Victims and Witnesses Act, shall be excluded from any hearing and, except for the persons specified in this Section only persons, including representatives of agencies and associations, who in the opinion of the court have a direct interest in the case or in the work of the court shall be admitted to the hearing. However, the court may, for the minor's safety and protection and for good cause shown, prohibit any person or agency present in court from further disclosing the minor's identity. Nothing in this subsection (6) prevents the court from allowing other juveniles to be present or to participate in a court session being held under the Juvenile Drug Court Treatment Act.
    (7) A party shall not be entitled to exercise the right to a substitution of a judge without cause under subdivision (a)(2) of Section 2‑1001 of the Code of Civil Procedure in a proceeding under this Act if the judge is currently assigned to a proceeding involving the alleged abuse, neglect, or dependency of the minor's sibling or half sibling and that judge has made a substantive ruling in the proceeding involving the minor's sibling or half sibling.
(Source: P.A. 93‑539, eff. 8‑18‑03; 94‑271, eff. 1‑1‑06.)

    (705 ILCS 405/1‑6) (from Ch. 37, par. 801‑6)
    Sec. 1‑6. State's Attorney. The State's Attorneys of the several counties shall represent the people of the State of Illinois in proceedings under this Act in their respective counties.
(Source: P.A. 85‑601.)

    (705 ILCS 405/1‑7)(from Ch. 37, par. 801‑7)
    Sec. 1‑7. Confidentiality of law enforcement records.
    (A) Inspection and copying of law enforcement records maintained by law enforcement agencies that relate to a minor who has been arrested or taken into custody before his or her 17th birthday shall be restricted to the following:
        (1) Any local, State or federal law enforcement
     officers of any jurisdiction or agency when necessary for the discharge of their official duties during the investigation or prosecution of a crime or relating to a minor who has been adjudicated delinquent and there has been a previous finding that the act which constitutes the previous offense was committed in furtherance of criminal activities by a criminal street gang, or, when necessary for the discharge of its official duties in connection with a particular investigation of the conduct of a law enforcement officer, an independent agency or its staff created by ordinance and charged by a unit of local government with the duty of investigating the conduct of law enforcement officers. For purposes of this Section, "criminal street gang" has the meaning ascribed to it in Section 10 of the Illinois Streetgang Terrorism Omnibus Prevention Act.
        (2) Prosecutors, probation officers, social workers,
     or other individuals assigned by the court to conduct a pre‑adjudication or pre‑disposition investigation, and individuals responsible for supervising or providing temporary or permanent care and custody for minors pursuant to the order of the juvenile court, when essential to performing their responsibilities.
        (3) Prosecutors and probation officers:
            (a) in the course of a trial when institution of
         criminal proceedings has been permitted or required under Section 5‑805; or
            (b) when institution of criminal proceedings has
         been permitted or required under Section 5‑805 and such minor is the subject of a proceeding to determine the amount of bail; or
            (c) when criminal proceedings have been
         permitted or required under Section 5‑805 and such minor is the subject of a pre‑trial investigation, pre‑sentence investigation, fitness hearing, or proceedings on an application for probation.
        (4) Adult and Juvenile Prisoner Review Board.
        (5) Authorized military personnel.
        (6) Persons engaged in bona fide research, with the
     permission of the Presiding Judge of the Juvenile Court and the chief executive of the respective law enforcement agency; provided that publication of such research results in no disclosure of a minor's identity and protects the confidentiality of the minor's record.
        (7) Department of Children and Family Services child
     protection investigators acting in their official capacity.
        (8) The appropriate school official. Inspection and
     copying shall be limited to law enforcement records transmitted to the appropriate school official by a local law enforcement agency under a reciprocal reporting system established and maintained between the school district and the local law enforcement agency under Section 10‑20.14 of the School Code concerning a minor enrolled in a school within the school district who has been arrested or taken into custody for any of the following offenses:
            (i) unlawful use of weapons under Section 24‑1
         of the Criminal Code of 1961;
            (ii) a violation of the Illinois Controlled
         Substances Act;
            (iii) a violation of the Cannabis Control Act;