Overview:

Runaway applies to youth who have been placed by the Department in congregate care or a foster home, or youth on furlough or home pass from CVA (see the CVA Outings Procedure for youth who abscond from a staff led CVA outing).

1. Initial Response
   1. ​Upon receiving notification that a youth has run away, the Deputy Probation Officer (DPO) or Juvenile Services Officer (JSO) fielding the call shall do the following:
      1. Confirm if the reporting party notified the youth’s parent(s)/guardian(s) of the runaway incident
      2. Notify the on-duty Juvenile Hall Shift Leader and the on-duty Juvenile Hall Supervising Deputy Probation Officer (SDPO) of the runaway
         1. If there is no on-duty Juvenile Hall SDPO, the DPO or JSO shall notify the on-call Juvenile Hall SDPO and/or the Placement / Commitment Unit SDPO
      3. Contact the local Law Enforcement Agency (LEA) of jurisdiction to report the runaway if not already done by others
      4. Complete a Placement / CVA Runaway(s) Worksheet (F: Drive > Juvenile Hall > Control Room > Control Room Printable Forms & Help)
      5. ​Add the youth’s name to the Probation Wants List (F: Drive > Juvenile Hall > Control Room > Control Room Graveshift Documents)
2. ​​Administrative Response
   1. ​As soon as possible, but before the end of the first business day following the run away, the assigned DPO or designee shall do the following:
      1. Generate a BOL (Be on The Lookout) (in Monitor) and send to a Probation Legal Clerk for processing
      2. Contact the youth’s parent(s)/guardian(s) and direct them to contact the youths assigned DPO, their local LEA or Juvenile Hall if their child contacts them
      3. Generate a Wanted Juvenile (in Monitor) and send to [email protected] and other LEAs as necessary
   2. If the youth’s whereabouts remain unknown after 48 hours:
      1. Generate a Warrant Declaration (in Monitor) and JV 735 – Juvenile Notice of Violation of Probation (in Monitor) and send to the Juvenile Court Clerk for processing
      2. Generate a JH Admission Form (in Monitor)
      3. Notify Juvenile Hall once the warrant has been signed
         1. The youth will stop receiving custody credits as of the date they absconded
   3. Once notified that the warrant has been signed, a Juvenile Hall SDPO shall arrange to have the youth removed/released from the Juvenile Hall Monitor Roster as an “Escape”(Intake > Release | How: JH Release | Reason: 17-Escaped | To: Active Warrant | Notes: Absconded from court ordered placement, whereabouts unknown)
3. ​Field Operations Response
   1. ​The assigned DPO, or designee shall do the following:
      1. Make reasonable efforts to locate the youth by contacting individuals at the youth’s last known location, known recent contacts, family members, and friends
      2. Follow-up on any potential in-county leads by requesting to activate a field response team as appropriate, based on circumstances (timeliness of report on youth’s AWOL or whereabouts, whether the youth runaway incident occurred in San Luis Obispo County, etc…)
      3. Contact the Juvenile Services Chief Deputy Probation Officer (CDPO) to seek approval to contact Adult and Juvenile Division SDPOs to assist in gathering field trained DPOs to assemble a response team or teams (depending on need/availability)
         1. Follow chain of command if the Juvenile Services CDPO is unavailable
      4. Request available field trained DPOs respond to the Juvenile Services Center or another designated location
         1. The highest ranking responding officer will be designated as the Incident Commander
            1. An officer of lower rank who has more operational experience than the higher-ranking officer may be designated as the Incident Commander
   2. The Incident Commander, or their designee, shall do the following:
      1. Provide Juvenile Hall Control with a list of all the officers involved in the Field Response Team(s)
      2. Create a Field Response Team cellphone text group, as necessary, for all officers involved in the response (in office or in the field)
      3. Provide officers with Wanted Juvenile flyer (from Monitor) for the runaway youth(s)
      4. Develop and share an Operational Plan with responding officers, which may include officer(s) from local LEA, and which should accomplish the following:
         1. Establishes a perimeter and/or plan for systematically searching the city/area
         2. Provides direction for the duration of the Field Operations Response
         3. Defines the charges youth(s) may be arrested for, if contacted
            1. Youth may be charged with WIC 777 or WIC 871 (Escape) (with a SDPO/CDPO approval) and any other relevant charges, if circumstances exist
4. Follow-Up Response
   1. ​If a youth returns to a congregate care facility, foster home, or returns home while on furlough or Home Pass within 48 hours and no warrant is yet issued
      1. The DPO or JSO fielding the call shall do the following:
         1. Confirm if the reporting party has notified the youth’s parent(s)/guardian(s) of the youth’s return (if applicable)
         2. Notify the on-duty Juvenile Hall Shift Leader and the on-duty Juvenile Hall SDPO of the youth’s return
         3. Email the youth’s assigned DPO and their SDPO advising them of the youth’s return
         4. Remove the youth’s name from the Probation Wants List
      2. The assigned DPO shall do the following:
         1. Contact the youth to confirm they are in their placement or home
         2. Contact the youth’s parent(s)/guardian(s) advising them of the youth’s return (if applicable)
         3. Cancel the BOL
         4. Email PR___________ and other LEAs as necessary advising the Wanted Juvenile has been located
         5. Conduct an emergency Child and Family Team (CFT) meeting within three (3) business days of receiving notification of the youth’s return with all available team members to discuss the situation
   2. If a youth returns to a congregate care facility, foster home, or returns home while on furlough or Home Pass after 48 hours and a warrant has been requested
      1. ​The DPO or JSO fielding the call shall do the following:
         1. Confirm if the reporting party has notified the youth’s parent(s)/guardian(s) of the youth’s return (if applicable)
         2. Notify the on-duty Juvenile Hall Shift Leader and the on-duty Juvenile Hall SDPO of the youth’s return
         3. Confirm the status of the warrant
         4. Email the youth’s assigned DPO and their SDPO of advising them of the youth’s return and the status of the warrant
      2. The assigned DPO shall do the following:
         1. Contact the youth to confirm they are in their placement or home
         2. Contact the youth’s parent(s)/guardian(s) advising them of the youth’s return, if applicable
         3. Consult with SDPO to arrange response to arrest the youth on the warrant
         4. Youth returns to CVA/Juvenile Hall after absconding while on furlough/Home Pass
   3. Youth shall be booked into custody on a WIC777 Violation of Probation and processed as a normal Juvenile Hall Booking
   4. Youth returned on warrant (arrest)
      1. Youth shall be booked into custody on a Return on Warrant with any other relevant charges and processed as a normal Juvenile Hall Booking