Arizona Laws 8-291.01. Effect of incompetency; request for examination
A. A juvenile shall not participate in a delinquency, incorrigibility or criminal proceeding if the court determines that the juvenile is incompetent to proceed.
Terms Used In Arizona Laws 8-291.01
- Adult court: means the appropriate justice court, municipal court or criminal division of the superior court that has jurisdiction to hear proceedings concerning offenses committed by juveniles as provided in sections 8-327 and 13-501. See Arizona Laws 8-201
- Incompetent: means a juvenile who does not have sufficient present ability to consult with the juvenile's lawyer with a reasonable degree of rational understanding or who does not have a rational and factual understanding of the proceedings against the juvenile. See Arizona Laws 8-291
- Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
- Juvenile: means a person who is under eighteen years of age at the time the issue of competency is raised. See Arizona Laws 8-291
- Juvenile court: means the juvenile division of the superior court when exercising its jurisdiction over children in any proceeding relating to delinquency, dependency or incorrigibility. See Arizona Laws 8-201
- Petition: means a written statement of the essential facts that allege delinquency, incorrigibility or dependency. See Arizona Laws 8-201
- Probable cause: A reasonable ground for belief that the offender violated a specific law.
- Writing: includes printing. See Arizona Laws 1-215
B. At any time after the filing of a petition for delinquency or incorrigibility or a petition that seeks to transfer a juvenile to adult court, a party may request in writing or the court on its own motion may order that the juvenile be examined to determine if the juvenile is competent. The request shall state the facts in support of the request for a competency examination. The presence of a mental illness, defect or disability alone is not grounds for finding a juvenile incompetent. The court shall not order a juvenile who is under the jurisdiction of the juvenile court to participate in a treatment program for the restoration of competency unless the court made a prior finding of probable cause pursuant to rule 3(f), rules of procedure for the juvenile court.