Juvenile Court Rules  Rule 3. Filing of application for complaint and first offense determination

When the clerk-magistrate receives an application for complaint, the clerk-magistrate shall create/initiate an application for complaint in the court’s statewide docketing system. If one or more of the charges listed in the complaint is a minor misdemeanor, the clerk-magistrate shall search the child’s name in the index of that system for all Juvenile Court locations to determine whether the child has any record. The clerk-magistrate shall then make the determination as to whether the court lacks jurisdiction to hear the complaint, or whether a clerk’s hearing should be scheduled for the complaint based on the scenarios outlined in subsection B of this rule.

1. Out of State Records Search

If the application for complaint alleges a single minor misdemeanor or multiple minor misdemeanors from one single incident, and a search of the statewide docketing system does not list an entry for the child in another criminal matter, the clerk-magistrate shall request that probation conduct a search of out of state records regarding the child for the purposes of making a first offense determination under Wallace W. only. If the result of the out of state search is no record for the child, then the clerk shall follow the process provided for in section B.1. of this rule. If the out of state records search does result in a record for the child, the clerk shall follow the process provided for in section C of this rule.

1. The application for complaint alleges a single minor misdemeanor or multiple minor misdemeanors from one single incident

The clerk-magistrate shall dismiss the complaint for lack of jurisdiction. The dismissal shall be noted on the docket of the application for complaint using the docket code designated by the Administrative Office of the Juvenile Court.

2. The application for complaint alleges a major misdemeanor and/or felony

The clerk-magistrate shall schedule a clerk’s hearing if the complaint alleges a major misdemeanor, shall schedule a clerk’s hearing if the complaint alleges a felony only if such a hearing is requested by law enforcement, and may schedule a clerk’s hearing in other circumstances consistent with G.L. c. 218, § 35A.

3. The application for complaint alleges a combination of one or more minor misdemeanors and one or more major misdemeanors or felonies from one single incident

The clerk-magistrate shall dismiss the minor misdemeanors as a first offense and shall determine whether process shall issue in the normal course on the other offense(s). The dismissal of the minor misdemeanors shall be noted on the docket of the application for complaint using the docket code designated by the Administrative Office of the Juvenile Court.

4. A single application for complaint alleges multiple offenses from separate incidents, and the major misdemeanors and/or felonies arose out of an incident that occurred before the incident where the minor misdemeanors occurred

The Commonwealth may determine to keep the minor misdemeanors in the pre- arraignment phase and proceed on the major misdemeanors and/or felonies only. If, following arraignment, the Commonwealth proves the major misdemeanors and/or felonies, the Commonwealth may then seek to arraign on the minor misdemeanor(s) without holding a Wallace W. hearing. A prior charge shall be considered “proven” if it resulted in an adjudication of delinquency, youthful offender, or continued without a finding after a plea of delinquency or a verdict of delinquency.

5. A single application for complaint alleges multiple offenses from separate incidents, and the minor misdemeanors arose out of an incident that occurred before the incident where one or more major misdemeanors and/or felonies occurred

The clerk-magistrate shall dismiss the minor misdemeanors as a first offense and shall determine whether process shall issue in the normal course on the other offense(s). The dismissal of the minor misdemeanors shall be noted on the docket of the application for complaint using the docket code designated by the Administrative Office of the Juvenile Court.

1. The application for complaint alleges one or more minor misdemeanors, and the child has a record consisting of previous adjudications of delinquency, youthful offender or continued without a finding after a plea of delinquency or a verdict of delinquency or admission to sufficient facts

The clerk-magistrate shall schedule a clerk’s hearing and determine whether probable cause exists for the complaint to issue as to the new offense.

2. The complaint alleges one or more minor misdemeanors and the child has a record consisting only of one or more of the following: a dismissal of a previous offense as a ‘first offense’, any other dismissal that is not on the merits, including, but not limited to, dismissal for lack of prosecution, dismissal after a general continuance, or dismissal following judicial or prosecutor diversion, a nolle prosequi or an open case

The clerk-magistrate shall notify the Commonwealth pursuant to section 4 of these Rules that the complaint raises a Wallace W. issue. If the Commonwealth notifies the clerk- magistrate in writing that it intends to prove multiple offenses, the clerk-magistrate may issue a delinquency complaint on the minor misdemeanor(s) after a finding of probable cause. Once the complaint is issued, a Wallace W. hearing shall be scheduled by the court. If the Commonwealth does not intend to proceed, the clerk-magistrate shall dismiss the application for complaint for lack of jurisdiction. The dismissal of the minor misdemeanor shall be noted on the docket of the application for the complaint using the docket code designated by the Administrative Office of the Juvenile Court.

3. The application for complaint alleges one or more minor misdemeanors and the child has a record consisting only of a dismissal on the merits

The clerk-magistrate shall dismiss the minor misdemeanors for lack of jurisdiction. The dismissal of the minor misdemeanors shall be noted on the docket of the application for complaint using the docket code designated by the Administrative Office of the Juvenile Court.

The clerk-magistrate shall notify, in writing, the Assistant District Attorney assigned to the Juvenile Court to determine whether the Commonwealth intends to prove multiple offenses. If the Commonwealth confirms that they intend to proceed on multiple offenses, the complaint shall issue and the clerk shall schedule a Wallace W. hearing. If the Commonwealth does not respond in writing within 30 days of notification by the clerk-magistrate, the clerk-magistrate shall dismiss the complaint as a ‘first offense’ based on lack of jurisdiction. See Wallace W. at 801. The clerk-magistrate shall docket the notification to and response from the Commonwealth on the case using the docket codes designated by the Administrative Office of the Juvenile Court.

Sections A. and B. of this rule are a compilation of the various scenarios presented in Commonwealth v. Wallace W., Commonwealth v. Nick N. and Commonwealth v. Manolo M., 486 Mass. 678 (2021). There may be other possible scenarios not included in this list. Every application for complaint with a minor misdemeanor should be reviewed to determine whether a Wallace W. hearing is necessary. Section A. of this rule requires the clerk-magistrate to search the statewide docketing system to determine whether the child has any prior court appearances.

Sections B.4 and 5 refer to scenarios involving multiple offenses from different incidents appearing on one single complaint. The focus of the analysis as to whether a Wallace W. issue exists is on the timing of the incidents not the number of complaints.