[Adopted 2-26-1990 by Ord. No. 425 (Ch. 6, Part 6, of the 1981 Code of Ordinances)]
[Amended 5-8-1995 by Ord. No. 513]
A. 
The Peters Township Council shall appoint up to nine Commission members.
B. 
All members shall be Peters Township residents and should be selected from a cross section of the community.
C. 
Council may seek recommendations from police, school officials, clergy and heads of youth-serving agencies.
D. 
The Commission members shall exclude local government and political officials, including, but not limited to, all municipal employees and their immediate families; and shall exclude individuals whose job or interest involves making decisions which affect Peters Township's youth, including, but not limited to, directors and staff of youth-serving agencies, probation officers, guidance counselors and ministers;
[Amended 4-27-2020 by Ord. No. 851]
E. 
All members will be required to obtain clearances under Pennsylvania Act 34 of 1985, as amended, Pennsylvania Act 114 of 2006, as amended, and the Pennsylvania Child Protective Services Law (23 Pa.C.S.A., Chapter 63), as amended.
[Amended 4-27-2020 by Ord. No. 851]
F. 
Membership to the Youth Commission must be approved by the Washington County Juvenile Court. Members must be sworn -in by a duly appointed or elected member of the Washington County Court System before participating in their first Commission meeting.
[Amended 4-27-2020 by Ord. No. 851]
G. 
The term of office will be three years and will be staggered so that 1/3 of the membership is appointed annually. The initial terms shall be three members for three years; three members for four years; and three members for five years.
[Amended 5-8-1995 by Ord. No. 513]
The Youth Commission shall elect, amongst their membership, a Chairperson, Vice Chairperson, Recording Secretary, and a Corresponding Secretary.
A. 
The Chairperson shall preside at all meetings and hearings.
B. 
The Vice Chairperson, in the absence of the Chairperson, shall preside at all meetings and hearings.
C. 
The Recording Secretary shall maintain minutes and nonconfidential correspondence.
D. 
The Corresponding Secretary maintains all confidential records and assures that all forms and case tracking procedures are kept current.
[Amended 5-8-1995 by Ord. No. 513; 4-27-2020 by Ord. No. 851]
Each Commission member will be required to complete training sessions within four months of being appointed by Council. In addition, on an annual basis, all Commission members must complete training sessions in order to remain on the Commission. The sessions that constitute initial training and annual training for Commission members shall be set by recommendation of the Police Chief and approval of the Youth Commission. A copy of these training sessions shall be provided to all members prior to appointment to the Youth Commission. The Police Chief shall retain all documents and other records showing Commission members completed the relevant training for as long as these members serve on the Commission.
[Amended 12-14-1992 by Ord. No. 474]
The Youth Commission shall meet every other month, or as necessary to develop assignment and strategy for new cases. A quorum is required at each meeting and shall be a majority of present board membership.
[Amended 5-8-1995 by Ord. No. 513; 4-27-2020 by Ord. No. 851]
Criteria for participating youth:
A. 
Must be a resident of Peters Township.
B. 
Must be under 18 years of age when the act was committed.
C. 
Must be first appearance before the Youth Commission.
D. 
The youth must have no prior criminal history at the time the act was committed.
E. 
The offense against the youth brought before the Youth Commission cannot be a reduction of a more severe offense for which the youth could have been charged.
F. 
Must admit the existence of a problem, which warrants the Youth Commission involvement.
G. 
All parties involved: police, youth, parent(s), victim(s), etc., must agree to have the Youth Commission handle the case and to the amount of restitution.
H. 
Youth and parent(s) must agree to the conditions proposed by the Youth Commission.
[Amended 5-8-1995 by Ord. No. 513; 4-27-2020 by Ord. No. 851]
A. 
All cases shall be submitted to the Police Chief or their designee for administrative review. Cases involving criminal activity shall be submitted to the Youth Commission at the Police Chief's or their designee's discretion, utilizing the criteria below. All cases referred by other agencies/institutions (i.e., the school district, churches), will be automatically forwarded to the Commission by the Police Chief or their designee at a regular meeting.
B. 
The Police Chief or their designee shall conduct an eligibility search of all youths referred to the Commission.
C. 
Qualifying offenses for referral to the Youth Commission include:
(1) 
First offense in general, including:
(a) 
Status offenses.
(b) 
Summary offenses (except drug- and alcohol-related offenses).
(c) 
Misdemeanors and cases of a minor felonious nature referred back to the Township by the Juvenile Court.
(2) 
Noncriminal social problems.
D. 
The Youth Commission shall have the authority to decline a case for cause. In such cases, the Youth Commission shall make the youth aware of the cause for declining the case. Causes for declining a case may include, but are not limited to:
(1) 
Repeated appearance by the youth before the Youth Commission.
(2) 
Previous disregard by the youth of the direction and rulings given by the Youth Commission.
(3) 
Any case where the Youth Commission does not feel it would be an appropriate body to adjudicate a case.
[Added 5-8-1995 by Ord. No. 513]
A. 
Once a youth is determined eligible for referral and on agreement, the youth and parent(s) will come to the Police Department or Commission meeting, and the formal waiver can be signed at this time. This waiver explains that the legal right to pursue preexisting procedures established by law, i.e., Juvenile Court, citation, warning, Magisterial District Judge hearings, etc., can be waived with the option of appearing before the Youth Commission. This formal waiver can be broken by any of the parties, except the victim(s) involved, at any time, for any reason, and preexisting procedures would be initiated automatically at the direction of the-Police Chief or their designee, if applicable. This formal waiver must be signed by the youth, parent(s), police officer or referring agent, and victim(s). In addition, a liability waiver must be signed at this time to cover any public/private work the youth may be required to perform; also, a waiver releasing information to the Youth Commission.
[Amended 4-27-2020 by Ord. No. 851]
B. 
A verbal explanation will be given to the youth and parent(s), and the youth and parent(s) must acknowledge their understanding of the waivers and the workings of the panel.
[Amended 4-27-2020 by Ord. No. 851]
A. 
Upon receiving notice that a formal waiver has been signed by all involved parties; the Youth Commission's Secretary will notify the youth, parent(s), and Police Officer of the next hearing date. The hearing will be conducted by a quorum of Commission members. One member of the quorum shall be the Chairperson or Vice Chairperson, and the remaining members shall be selected by the Chairperson at the regular meeting on a rotating basis.
B. 
At the initial hearing, the Chairperson will:
(1) 
Introduce himself/herself and other Commission members present.
(2) 
State the mission of the Youth Commission.
(3) 
Explain the meaning of the signed formal waiver (as did the Police Department) and the party's right to discontinue with the Youth Commission's procedure and return to the preexisting procedures established by law.
(4) 
Emphasize the strict confidentiality of Commission proceedings and ask the Secretary to record the information on an intake form.
(5) 
Introduce the referring Police Officer and hear the nature of the complaint and restitution required.
(6) 
Request the youth to explain "what brought them" to the Commission. Only interruptions from Commission members by asking for more information/clarification should be allowed.
A. 
Decide on course of action/restitution to be required (with the agreement of all parties) and time limitations.
B. 
Possible course of action may include any or all of the following:
(1) 
Place the youth on supervision to the Youth Commission or any member thereof no longer than six months.
(2) 
Require the youth to seek appropriate counseling (at their own expense).
(3) 
Assign physically able youth to a Township public/private agency for community service work, with a Commission member's oversight (not supervision).
(4) 
Assign specific requirements, i.e., curfew, self-reporting on academic progress.
(5) 
Refer the case back to the preexisting procedures.
C. 
Spell out follow-up assignments with appropriate Commission members, noting that failure to comply will result in immediate transference to preexisting procedures.
D. 
Advise the youth that any future involvement with the Police Department could not be handled by the Youth Commission.
E. 
Advise the youth that all Youth Commission records will be destroyed on the successful completion of the required disposition.