Prohibiting Detention of Youth Status Offenders Act of 2015
This bill amends the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act of 1974, with respect to the detention of a juvenile status offender (a juvenile arrested for an offense that would not be a crime if committed by an adult) who violates a valid court order, to require the court placing such juvenile in detention to issue a written order that: (1) identifies the valid court order that has been violated; (2) specifies the factual basis for determining that there is reasonable cause to believe that the juvenile has violated such order; (3) includes findings of fact to support a determination that there is no appropriate less restrictive alternative available to placing the juvenile in a secure detention or correctional facility, with due consideration to the best interest of the juvenile; (4) specifies the length of time, not to exceed three days, that the juvenile may remain in such facility and includes a plan for the juvenile's release; and (5) may not be renewed or extended. It provides that a juvenile status offender may only be detained once in any six-month period. The bill eliminates, not later than one year after the enactment of this Act, the use of valid court orders to provide secure lockup of juvenile status offenders.