What are North Dakota Juvenile Court Records?

Juvenile Courts in North Dakota are a division of District Courts that handle cases involving persons below the age of 18 years. A collection of notes and activities pertaining to a case in these courts make up a juvenile court record. The rules of procedure, programs, and activities of these specialized courts aim to protect the best interests of children, and to provide the support for troubled youths to adjust to better citizenship of the community. The Uniform Juvenile Act of the North Dakota Century Code provides definition and interpretation of the laws guiding the juvenile matters in the state.

What Information is Contained in a North Dakota Juvenile Record?

Juvenile Records in North Dakota will fall into one of these categories:

• Accounts of wrongdoing of a child
• Details of wrong done against a child
• Reports of a review of regulations to meet the needs of a child

All of them have the common feature of information that identifies the involved party in the record. Inclusive of this list is the case information ID, names of involved parties, and their addresses.

Courts records of delinquency cases will contain some information like these:

• Apprehension notices
• Detention information
• Court referrals
• Court dispositions
• Probation and court supervision progress updates

Court records and arrests records contain specific descriptive information about the involved party, such as

• Sex
• Race or ethnicity
• Color of eyes, skin and hair
• Fingerprints (in cases of arrests and commitment to custody)
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What Cases Are Heard By North Dakota Juvenile Courts?

North Dakota Juvenile Courts hear all cases for the adjudication and protection of a child. Among them are:

Delinquent and unruly behavior: Delinquency cases are separate from Unruly cases in North Dakota. Delinquency case category is the more serious of the two.

Child deprivation and neglect: a child lacking appropriate care or control

Guardianships

Underage smoking or alcoholism

Offenses of criminal equivalence in Adult courts

Traffic violations

Drug-related offenses

Parental Rights Termination

Who is Eligible to View Juvenile Records In the State?

Juvenile Records in North Dakota are closed to the public. Only a few persons can have unrestricted access to them:

• Authorized Court staff
• Juvenile’s school administrative head or delegated representative (for juvenile offenses that are felony equivalents)
• Authorized agents of the Uniform Crime Victims Compensation Program
• Division of Children and Family Services
• Department of Human Services
• Child’s representing attorney
• Juvenile
• Victim of the case or their representatives

Those a court order requirement include:

• Requests for relevant research
• Military personnel, along with a note of release from the child’s legal guardian or parents.
• The following parties can access the same information, but the name of the listed parties will remain hidden, unless otherwise indicated:
• Social services
• Statistical studies
• Drug treatment Records (the court can release full details upon the holder’s consent, or on discretion)

If the case received trial at the adult criminal court, or the juvenile is on the run and needs to be found, the authorities place the records in the publicly accessible space. The law enforcement agencies may also need to release a juvenile record if there is a national emergency requirement for it.

How to Find Juvenile Records in North Dakota

All agencies that create and maintain documents for juveniles make up the repositories of juvenile records in North Dakota. However, the release of these records are under restriction according to the guidelines of the law. Interested parties can visit the Office of the relevant District Court to request for a juvenile record. Keep in mind, that the records are not subject to the public records policy of the state: they are mostly under restrictions. To access them, one must either be on the eligibility list, or with a court order. Use the Guidelines for Eligibility to check status.

Be prepared with the name of the juvenile, the case ID, the District that handled the case, and the year of filing. Use the District Court Directory to locate the address of interest. Record viewing may be accessible for free, but copies may come at a fee. The administrative processes vary from district to district, therefore, contact the relevant address to get more information.

Records that are considered public may be accessible from some third-party websites. These websites often make searching simpler, as they are not limited by geographic location, and search engines on these sites may help when starting a search for a specific or multiple records. To begin using such a search engine on a third-party or government website, interested parties usually must provide:

• The name of the person involved in the record, unless said person is a juvenile
• The location or assumed location of the record or person involved. This includes information such as the city, county, or state that person resides in or was accused in.

Third-party sites are independent from government sources, and are not sponsored by these government agencies. Because of this, record availability on third-party sites may vary.

Can You Lookup North Dakota Juvenile Court Records Online?

No. They are not accessible online. Some offenses may warrant the moving of the record into public space, but only available at the courthouse of interest. If there is a need to alert the public on the escape of a violent juvenile, the authorities do so by using the state’s recognised means of communication.

Do North Dakota Juvenile Records Show up on A Background Check?

No. Juvenile Adjudications do not show up during a background check. Convictions of juveniles cases transferred to adult courts, and sex offenders may show up on search by certain authorized parties. They include childcare, healthcare, educational, and law enforcement employment agencies. The visibility of these exceptions are subject to the laws of confidentiality, expunction and sealing in the state.

How Long are Juvenile Records Kept in North Dakota?

The laws of the state allow the sealing and expungement of juvenile records. As per juvenile records, North Dakota is an auto process state. It means that juvenile records get sealed automatically upon conclusion of the case. After a specified period, the same records undergo expungement. The nature of the offense dictates largely the waiting period between sealing and expungement of the records. Here is a summary of the time frames for selected cases:

• Delinquency cases- 10 years after the closure of the case, or when the child turns 18, whichever is earlier
• Unruly behavior cases- 1 year after completing supervision
• Sex offenses- 50 years after disposition
• Juvenile special proceedings- 1 year for cases with petition filings for removal
• Child officer working file copy- when the child reaches the age of 18 years
• Juvenile drug treatment records- 2 after completion of the drug treatment program

Expungement of juvenile records takes place by shredding.