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Delaware moves to limit shackling of juveniles in court
Delaware moves to limit shackling of juveniles in court
Listen to this articleAs Maryland’s second-highest court is calling for an end to shackling of defendants in juvenile court, the neighboring state of Delaware appears to be a step ahead on that policy.
The Delaware Senate gave final approval early Friday to a bill limiting the use of leg shackles on defendants in juvenile delinquency proceedings, The Associated Press reports. The measure goes to Gov. Jack Markell, who would have to give his approval for it to become law.
Supporters of the bill in Delaware say much the same thing as Judge J. Frederick Sharer did in his Court of Appeals reported opinion Wednesday — that routine use of shackles can be demeaning and cause psychological harm to a child, serve no purpose and and that there should be no automatic presumption that shackles are needed.
Maryland’s top court, the Court of Appeals, has yet to address the shackling issue in a case, but the court approved a resolution last year that “adopts as policy the presumption against the shackling of children during proceedings in the juvenile court.”
