2008-M-086              In the Matter of the Welfare of: N.J.S., Child.

MAJORITY:  Appellant N.J.S. was 15 years old when he was charged with second-degree murder for the shooting death of his grandmother.  The State of Minnesota filed a motion to certify appellant for adult prosecution.  This statute requires a court to consider six factors in determining whether to certify a juvenile.    One of these factors is “the child’s prior record of delinquency.”   Appellant had no prior delinquency petitions or adjudications, but the district court considered evidence of his behavioral incidents at school as part of his “prior record of delinquency. 

 The district court concluded that all six factors weighed in favor of certification and certified appellant for adult prosecution.  The court of appeals affirmed.  We affirm the certification for adult prosecution, but we reverse the court of appeals‟ determination that school records can be part of the “prior record of delinquency

CONCUR:  Justice Page opined:  : I concur in the result.  I write separately to note that, while it is clear that N.J.S.‟s school and institutional disciplinary records are not “prior records of delinquency,” it is not clear to me that those records could not have been used under Minn. Stat. § 260B.125, subd. 4, to inform the court’s consideration of factors two and five.:

Meyer (Magnuson, Page, Paul Anderson, Barry Anders, on, Gildea, and Dietzen)

               Concur:  Page

               Took no part:  Magnuson

[MURDER}