Delaware officers must consider citations for eligible youth starting February 2027

Officers must consider a civil citation for an eligible youth. If they file certain listed charges instead, they must record why in the state criminal justice system. Youth must face only covered offenses and have no prior juvenile court finding of delinquency. Any earlier referral to a diversion program must be more than one year old. Officers may still file charges. Recording a reason is optional for other covered offenses. Joining the citation program is voluntary and requires a parent's consent. A referral also needs a victim's consent if there is one, except under a separate Delaware law. These duties begin February 20, 2027, 18 months after the bill was signed into law.

Each police agency must report its use of youth civil citations to the state police training commission every year. Each report must list every case where the agency charged an eligible youth instead of issuing a citation. The reporting duty begins February 20, 2027, 18 months after the bill was signed into law.

The state police training commission must include the youth citation program in its continuing training standards for officers. This applies to continuing training for police officers. The training requirement begins February 20, 2027, 18 months after the bill was signed into law.