§571-31 Taking children into custody; release; notice. (a) A child may be taken into custody by any police officer without order of the judge when there are reasonable grounds to believe that a child comes within section 571-11(1) or (2), or by any police or probation officer when there are reasonable grounds to believe that the child has violated a court order of probation or protective supervision.

(b) When an officer or other person takes a child into custody, the parents, guardian, or legal custodian shall be notified immediately. The child shall be:

(1) Released to the care of the child's parent or other responsible adult;

(2) Referred or delivered to the court or other designated agency with or without simultaneous release to parent or other responsible adult; or

(3) Taken directly to a detention facility if the child's immediate welfare or the protection of the community requires it or if the child is subject to detention for violation of a court order of probation or protective supervision.

(c) If the person taking the child into custody believes it desirable, the child's parent, guardian, or legal custodian may be required to sign a written promise to take the child to the court or other designated agency at the time arranged, or to the court at the time directed by the court.

(d) If a parent or other responsible custodian fails to produce the child in court or at another designated agency as required by an authorized notice, or when notified by the court, a summons or warrant may be issued for the apprehension of that person or the child or both. The court may assess the cost of the issuance and execution of the summons or warrant against the person. [L 1965, c 232, pt of §1; Supp, §333-16; HRS §571-31; am L 1972, c 2, pt of §33; am L 1976, c 85, §7; am L 1980, c 303, §4(2); am L 1988, c 294, §2; am L 2018, c 18, §45]

Rules of Court

Shelter and detention, see Hawaii Family Court Rules, part D(V).

Law Journals and Reviews

On suppression of evidence seized in violation of statute, see Suppression of Evidence Without the Aid of the Fourth, Fifth and Sixth Amendments. 8 HBJ, no. 4, at 109 (1972).

Case Notes

Subsection (b) only requires that police contact a minor's parent, guardian, or legal custodian to notify them that their child is in police custody; it does not give statutory right to minor's parent, guardian, or legal custodian to communicate with the minor prior to and to be present at the minor's custodial interrogation. 90 H. 246, 978 P.2d 684 (1999).

In absence of any specified time limit in the HRS, when a child who is taken into custody under this section is going to be released to the custody of the child's parent or other responsible adult under subsection (b)(1), the release to the parent or responsible adult must occur within a reasonable time. 91 H. 147 (App.), 981 P.2d 704 (1998).

In the absence of any evidence that lapse of time was unreasonable, police did not violate notification requirement of subsection (b). 91 H. 147 (App.), 981 P.2d 704 (1998).