§ 15A-804. Voluntary protective custody.
§15A‑804. Voluntary protective custody.
(a) Upon request of awitness, a judge of superior court may determine whether he is a materialwitness, and may order his protective custody. The order may provide forconfinement, custody in other than a penal institution, release to the custodyof a law‑ enforcement officer or other person, or other provisionsappropriate to the circumstances.
(b) A person havingcustody of the witness may not release him without his consent unless directedto do so by a superior court judge, or unless the order so provides.
(c) The issuance ofeither a material witness order or an order for voluntary protective custodydoes not preclude the issuance of the other order.
(d) An order forvoluntary protective custody may be modified or vacated as appropriate by asuperior court judge upon the request of the witness or upon the court's ownmotion. (1973, c. 1286, s. 1.)