For purposes of this article, the following terms and phrases shall have the following meanings:

(1) AVERAGE COST OF DETENTION. The average cost of detention of children as determined from experience in Alabama and as computed by the Department of Youth Services.

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Terms Used In Alabama Code 12-15-201

  • following: means next after. See Alabama Code 1-1-1
  • Guardian: A person legally empowered and charged with the duty of taking care of and managing the property of another person who because of age, intellect, or health, is incapable of managing his (her) own affairs.
  • 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.
  • Probation: A sentencing alternative to imprisonment in which the court releases convicted defendants under supervision as long as certain conditions are observed.
  • state: when applied to the different parts of the United States, includes the District of Columbia and the several territories of the United States. See Alabama Code 1-1-1
(2) CONSENT DECREE. An order, entered after the filing of a delinquency or child in need of supervision petition and before the entry of an adjudication order, suspending the proceedings and placing the child under supervision pursuant to terms and conditions agreed to between the child and his or her parent, legal guardian, or legal custodian and approved by the juvenile court.
(3) NONOFFENDER. A child who is subject to the jurisdiction of the juvenile court for reasons other than the legally prohibited conduct of the child.
(4) STATUS OFFENDER. A status offender is an individual who has been charged with or adjudicated for conduct that would not, pursuant to the law of the jurisdiction in which the offense was committed, be a crime if committed by an adult. An adjudicated status offender who violates the terms of his or her probation or aftercare remains a status offender for purposes of subdivision (1) of subsection (a) of Section 12-15-208, unless the child is contemporaneously adjudicated for having committed a delinquent act that is not a status offense. Status offenses include, but are not limited to, the following:

a. Truancy.
b. Violations of municipal ordinances applicable only to children.
c. Runaway.
d. Beyond control.
e. Consumption or possession of tobacco products.
f. Possession and consumption of alcohol, which is a status offense by federal law, even though considered a delinquent act by state law.
g. Driving under the influence pursuant to subsection (b) of Section 32-5A-191, which is a status offense by federal law, even though considered a delinquent act by state law.
(5) VALID COURT ORDER. An order given by a juvenile court judge to a child who was brought before the juvenile court and made subject to the order; and who received, before the issuance of the order, the full due process rights guaranteed to the child by the Constitution of the United States.