Louisiana Children’s Code 923 – Expungement and sealing of adjudications involving human trafficking victims
Terms Used In Louisiana Children's Code 923
- Arrest: Taking physical custody of a person by lawful authority.
- Child: means any person under the age of twenty-one, including an emancipated minor, who commits a delinquent act before attaining seventeen years of age. See Louisiana Children's Code 804
- Evidence: Information presented in testimony or in documents that is used to persuade the fact finder (judge or jury) to decide the case for one side or the other.
- Probation: A sentencing alternative to imprisonment in which the court releases convicted defendants under supervision as long as certain conditions are observed.
A. A motion to set aside an adjudication pursuant to the provisions of this Article, may be filed and served upon the district attorney at any time following an adjudication of delinquency and completion of the disposition relating thereto involving the offenses of prostitution pursuant to La. Rev. Stat. 14:82, prostitution by massage pursuant to La. Rev. Stat. 14:83.3 or 83.4, or crime against nature by solicitation pursuant to La. Rev. Stat. 14:89.2 when the child‘s participation in the offense was a result of having been a victim of human trafficking under La. Rev. Stat. 14:46.2 or a victim of a severe form of trafficking under the federal Trafficking Victims Protection Act (22 U.S.C. § 7101 et seq.).
B. The motion shall be in writing, shall describe the supporting evidence with particularity, and shall include copies of any documents showing that the child is entitled to relief under this Article.
C. The motion shall not be denied without a contradictory hearing unless it appears on the face of the motion that, as a matter of law, the child is not entitled to the relief sought.
D. The court shall grant the motion if the court finds by a preponderance of the evidence that the violation was a result of the child having been a victim of human trafficking. Documentation of a child’s status as a victim of human trafficking provided by a federal, state, or local government agency shall create a presumption that the child’s adjudication was obtained as a result of having been a victim of human trafficking. However, such documentation shall not be required to grant a motion under this Article.
E. If the motion is granted, the court shall order the expungement and sealing of the record and report of the juvenile proceedings including all records and files related to the child’s arrest, citation, investigation, charge, delinquency proceedings, adjudication, and probation for the offense.
Acts 2013, No. 429, §3, eff. June 24, 2013; Acts 2017, No. 362, §1.