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Information for secure detention facilities about raising the age of delinquency

Intro

In 2023, the Minnesota Legislature redefined the term “delinquent child” so that it does not include a child alleged to have committed a delinquent act before becoming 13 years old. Effective August 1, 2026, and applied to acts committed on or after that date, these children will fall within the definition of a “child in need of protection or services” under Minnesota Statute § 260C.007, subd. 6(18).

As implementation of this law continues, the Minnesota Department of Corrections (DOC) will periodically issue written guidance to impactded licensed programs and counties navigating these changes. 
 

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Secure detention placement for children placed through Interstate Compact

Secure detention facilities may hold a child age 10-12 for more than 24 hours where the child is being supervised in Minnesota pursuant to the Interstate Compact for Juveniles (“ICJ”) and ICJ rules require secure detention. See Minnesota Statutes § 260C.001, subd. 2 (stating that “[a]ll compacting states’ laws . . . conflicting with this compact are superseded to the extent of the conflict” and that “all rules . . . promulgated by the Interstate Commission . . . are binding upon the compacting state”); 34 U.S.C. § 11133(a)(11)(A)(i)(III) (exempting juveniles “held in accordance with the Interstate Compact on Juveniles as enacted by the State” from the JJDPA’s prohibitions on secure detention).


Rules 6-102 and 6-103A of the Interstate Commission for Juveniles require a child who has been adjudicated delinquent in another state or accused of an act that would be criminal if committed by an adult to be “detained in secure facilities until returned by the home/demanding state” where there is an active warrant for absconding, violating the terms of their probation or parole, or committing the criminal act. Rules 6-102 and 6-103 also require that “[r]unaways and accused status offenders” from out of state must be detained in a secure facility if they “are a danger to themselves or others.”
 

For questions, contact your assigned DOC inspector.