| ||||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||||
1 | AN ACT concerning courts.
| |||||||||||||||||||||
2 | Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
| |||||||||||||||||||||
3 | represented in the General Assembly:
| |||||||||||||||||||||
4 | Section 5. The Juvenile Court Act of 1987 is amended by | |||||||||||||||||||||
5 | changing Section 2-17 and by adding Section 2-10.3 as follows: | |||||||||||||||||||||
6 | (705 ILCS 405/2-10.3 new) | |||||||||||||||||||||
7 | Sec. 2-10.3. Media access to minor. Any party may file a | |||||||||||||||||||||
8 | motion requesting the court to review the decision of a | |||||||||||||||||||||
9 | temporary custodian or guardian appointed under this Act to | |||||||||||||||||||||
10 | deny a minor under the age of 18 access to the media. The | |||||||||||||||||||||
11 | Department of Children and Family Services bears the burden of | |||||||||||||||||||||
12 | demonstrating by clear and convincing evidence that its | |||||||||||||||||||||
13 | decision to deny the minor access to the media is in the | |||||||||||||||||||||
14 | minor's best interest. In making its determination, the court | |||||||||||||||||||||
15 | shall weigh the following factors in addition to considering | |||||||||||||||||||||
16 | the best interests factors listed in subsection (4.05) of | |||||||||||||||||||||
17 | Section 1-3: | |||||||||||||||||||||
18 | (1) the minor's right to free speech under the First | |||||||||||||||||||||
19 | Amendment to the Constitution of the United States and | |||||||||||||||||||||
20 | Section 4 of Article I of the Illinois Constitution; | |||||||||||||||||||||
21 | (2) the minor's level of maturity and ability to | |||||||||||||||||||||
22 | appreciate the consequences of his or her actions in | |||||||||||||||||||||
23 | talking with the media; |
| |||||||
| |||||||
1 | (3) the reasons the temporary custodian or guardian is | ||||||
2 | denying access; | ||||||
3 | (4) the ability and willingness of the media outlet to | ||||||
4 | respect the minor's privacy by, for example, using | ||||||
5 | pseudonyms and limiting photographs of the minor, if | ||||||
6 | requested by the minor; and | ||||||
7 | (5) any other factor the court deems relevant.
| ||||||
8 | (705 ILCS 405/2-17) (from Ch. 37, par. 802-17)
| ||||||
9 | Sec. 2-17. Guardian ad litem.
| ||||||
10 | (1) Immediately upon the filing of a petition alleging | ||||||
11 | that the minor is
a person described in Sections 2-3 or 2-4 of | ||||||
12 | this Article, the court shall
appoint a guardian ad litem for | ||||||
13 | the minor if:
| ||||||
14 | (a) such petition alleges that the minor is an abused | ||||||
15 | or neglected
child; or
| ||||||
16 | (b) such petition alleges that charges alleging the | ||||||
17 | commission
of any of the sex offenses defined in Article | ||||||
18 | 11 or in Sections 11-1.20, 11-1.30, 11-1.40, 11-1.50, | ||||||
19 | 11-1.60, 12-13,
12-14,
12-14.1,
12-15 or 12-16 of the | ||||||
20 | Criminal Code of 1961 or the Criminal Code of 2012, have | ||||||
21 | been
filed against a defendant in any court and that such | ||||||
22 | minor is the alleged
victim of the acts of defendant in the | ||||||
23 | commission of such offense.
| ||||||
24 | Unless the guardian ad litem appointed pursuant to this | ||||||
25 | paragraph
(1) is an attorney at law, he shall be represented in |
| |||||||
| |||||||
1 | the performance
of his duties by counsel. The guardian ad | ||||||
2 | litem shall represent the best
interests of the minor and | ||||||
3 | shall present recommendations to the court
consistent with | ||||||
4 | that duty.
| ||||||
5 | (2) Before proceeding with the hearing, the court shall
| ||||||
6 | appoint a guardian ad litem for the minor if:
| ||||||
7 | (a) no parent, guardian, custodian or relative of the | ||||||
8 | minor appears
at the first or any subsequent hearing of | ||||||
9 | the case;
| ||||||
10 | (b) the petition prays for the appointment of a | ||||||
11 | guardian with power
to consent to adoption; or
| ||||||
12 | (c) the petition for which the minor is before the | ||||||
13 | court resulted
from a report made pursuant to the Abused | ||||||
14 | and Neglected Child Reporting
Act.
| ||||||
15 | (3) The court may appoint a guardian ad litem for the minor | ||||||
16 | whenever
it finds that there may be a conflict of interest | ||||||
17 | between the minor and
his parents or other custodian or that it | ||||||
18 | is otherwise in the minor's
best interest to do so.
| ||||||
19 | (4) Unless the guardian ad litem is an attorney, he shall | ||||||
20 | be
represented by counsel.
| ||||||
21 | (5) The reasonable fees of a guardian ad litem appointed | ||||||
22 | under this
Section shall be fixed by the court and charged to | ||||||
23 | the parents of the
minor, to the extent they are able to pay. | ||||||
24 | If the parents are unable to
pay those fees, they shall be paid | ||||||
25 | from the general fund of the county.
| ||||||
26 | (6) A guardian ad litem appointed under this Section, |
| |||||||
| |||||||
1 | shall receive
copies of any and all classified reports of | ||||||
2 | child abuse and neglect made
under the Abused and Neglected | ||||||
3 | Child Reporting Act in which the minor who
is the subject of a | ||||||
4 | report under the Abused and Neglected Child Reporting
Act, is | ||||||
5 | also the minor for whom the guardian ad litem is appointed | ||||||
6 | under
this Section.
| ||||||
7 | (6.5) A guardian ad litem appointed under this Section or | ||||||
8 | attorney appointed under this Act shall receive a copy of each | ||||||
9 | significant event report that involves the minor no later than | ||||||
10 | 3 days after the Department learns of an event requiring a | ||||||
11 | significant event report to be written, or earlier as required | ||||||
12 | by Department rule. | ||||||
13 | (6.6) The Department of Children and Family Services shall | ||||||
14 | provide notice to a minor's guardian ad litem and attorney | ||||||
15 | appointed under this Act any time that the Department, in its | ||||||
16 | capacity as the minor's temporary custodian or guardian, | ||||||
17 | denies a request by the media to speak with the minor. The | ||||||
18 | Department shall provide the notice within one business day of | ||||||
19 | its decision. The notice must at a minimum include the | ||||||
20 | following: the name of the child, the name of the media, the | ||||||
21 | date of the inquiry from the media, and the rationale for the | ||||||
22 | Department's decision. | ||||||
23 | (7) The appointed
guardian ad
litem shall remain the | ||||||
24 | child's guardian ad litem throughout the entire juvenile
trial | ||||||
25 | court
proceedings, including permanency hearings and | ||||||
26 | termination of parental rights
proceedings, unless there is a |
| |||||||
| |||||||
1 | substitution entered by order of the court.
| ||||||
2 | (8) The guardian
ad
litem or an agent of the guardian ad | ||||||
3 | litem shall have a minimum of one
in-person contact with the | ||||||
4 | minor and one contact with one
of the
current foster parents or | ||||||
5 | caregivers prior to the
adjudicatory hearing, and at
least one | ||||||
6 | additional in-person contact with the child and one contact | ||||||
7 | with
one of the
current foster
parents or caregivers after the | ||||||
8 | adjudicatory hearing but
prior to the first permanency hearing
| ||||||
9 | and one additional in-person contact with the child and one | ||||||
10 | contact with one
of the current
foster parents or caregivers | ||||||
11 | each subsequent year. For good cause shown, the
judge may | ||||||
12 | excuse face-to-face interviews required in this subsection.
| ||||||
13 | (9) In counties with a population of 100,000 or more but | ||||||
14 | less than
3,000,000, each guardian ad litem must successfully | ||||||
15 | complete a training program
approved by the Department of | ||||||
16 | Children and Family Services. The Department of
Children and | ||||||
17 | Family Services shall provide training materials and documents | ||||||
18 | to
guardians ad litem who are not mandated to attend the | ||||||
19 | training program. The
Department of Children and Family | ||||||
20 | Services shall develop
and
distribute to all guardians ad | ||||||
21 | litem a bibliography containing information
including but not | ||||||
22 | limited to the juvenile court process, termination of
parental | ||||||
23 | rights, child development, medical aspects of child abuse, and | ||||||
24 | the
child's need for safety and permanence.
| ||||||
25 | (Source: P.A. 100-689, eff. 1-1-19; 101-81, eff. 7-12-19.)
|