(a) Any juvenile, including a juvenile who is under the jurisdiction of the court, who commits a criminal offense on or after the juvenile has reached the age of 18 years is subject to prosecution as an adult. A juvenile who is emancipated shall be prosecuted as an adult for the commission of a criminal offense.

(b) A juvenile shall be prosecuted as an adult for any criminal offense the juvenile commits after a district or superior court conviction if either of the following applies:

(1) The juvenile has previously been transferred to and convicted in superior court.

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Terms Used In North Carolina General Statutes 7B-1604

  • Conviction: A judgement of guilt against a criminal defendant.
  • following: when used by way of reference to any section of a statute, shall be construed to mean the section next preceding or next following that in which such reference is made; unless when some other section is expressly designated in such reference. See North Carolina General Statutes 12-3
  • Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.

(2) The juvenile has previously been convicted in either district or superior court for a felony or a misdemeanor. Violations of the motor vehicle laws punishable as a misdemeanor or infraction shall not be considered a conviction for the purposes of this subsection unless the conviction is for an offense involving impaired driving as defined by N.C. Gen. Stat. § 20-4.01(24a). (1979, c. 815, s. 1; 1981, c. 469, s. 4; 1983, c. 837, s. 1; 1985, c. 459, s. 2; 1987, c. 409, s. 2; 1995, c. 328, s. 3; c. 462, s. 2; 1996, 2nd Ex. Sess., c. 18, s. 23.2(c); 1998-202, s. 6; 2017-57, s. 16D.4(c); 2018-142, s. 23(b); 2019-186, s. 2.)