§ 351.1. Probation, investigation and diagnostic assessment. 1.
Following a determination that a respondent has committed a designated
felony act and prior to the dispositional hearing, the judge shall order
a probation investigation and a diagnostic assessment. For the purposes
of this article, the probation investigation shall include, but not be
limited to, the history of the juvenile including previous conduct, the
family situation, any previous psychological and psychiatric reports,
school adjustment, previous social assistance provided by voluntary or
public agencies and the response of the juvenile to such assistance. For
the purposes of this article, the diagnostic assessment shall include,
but not be limited to, psychological tests and psychiatric interviews to
determine mental capacity and achievement, emotional stability and
mental disabilities. It shall include a clinical assessment of the
situational factors that may have contributed to the act or acts. When
feasible, expert opinion shall be rendered as to the risk presented by
the juvenile to others or himself, with a recommendation as to the need
for a restrictive placement.

2. Following a determination that a respondent committed a crime and
prior to the dispositional hearing, the court shall order a probation
investigation and may order a diagnostic assessment.

* 2-a. (a) In a social services district operating an approved
juvenile justice services close to home initiative pursuant to section
four hundred four of the social services law, the local probation
department shall develop and submit to the office of children and family
services for prior approval a validated pre-dispositional risk
assessment instrument and any risk assessment process. The office shall
share a copy of any such instrument and process with the office of
probation and correctional alternatives and any expert consulting with
the office pursuant to this section. Such department shall periodically
revalidate any approved pre-dispositional risk assessment instrument.
The department shall conspicuously post information about the instrument
on its website, including but not limited to, the name of the
instrument; the name and contact information of the person, institution
or company that developed such instrument; what the instrument is
intended to measure; the types of factors and information the instrument
takes into consideration; the process by which the instrument is used in
both the pre-disposition investigation and dispositional phase of a
hearing; the purpose for the instrument and how the instrument informs
the recommendation in the pre-dispositional investigation report; links
to independent research and studies about the instrument as well as its
own validation analysis relating to the instrument, when available; the
most recent date the instrument was validated and the date the next
re-validation process is anticipated to begin. The department shall
confer with appropriate stakeholders, including but not limited to,
attorneys for children, presentment agencies and the family court, prior
to revising any validated pre-dispositional risk assessment instrument
or process. Such department shall provide any approved pre-dispositional
risk assessment instrument and process to the temporary president of the
senate and the speaker of the assembly. Any revised pre-dispositional
risk assessment instrument shall be subject to periodic empirical
validation and to the approval of the office of children and family
services. The office of children and family services shall consult with
individuals with professional research experience and expertise in
criminal justice; social work; juvenile justice; and applied
mathematics, psychometrics and/or statistics to assist the office in
determining the methods it will use to: approve the department's
validated and revalidated pre-dispositional risk assessment instrument
and process; and analyze the effectiveness of the use of such instrument
and process in accomplishing their intended goals; and analyze, to the
greatest extent possible, any disparate impact on dispositional outcomes
for juveniles based on race, sex, national origin, economic status, and
any other constitutionally protected class, regarding the use of such
instrument. The office shall consult with such individuals regarding
whether it is appropriate to attempt to analyze whether there is any
such disparate impact based on sexual orientation and, if so, the best
methods to conduct such analysis. The office shall take into
consideration any recommendations given by such individuals involving
improvements that could be made to such instrument and process. The
department shall provide training on the approved instrument and any
approved process to the applicable family courts, presentment agency,
and court appointed attorneys for respondents.

(b) Once an initial validated risk assessment instrument and any risk
assessment process have been approved by the office of children and
family services in consultation with the office of probation and
correctional alternatives, the local probation department shall provide
the applicable supervising family court judge with a copy of the
validated risk assessment instrument and any such process along with the
letter from the office of children and family services approving the
instrument and process, if applicable, and indicating the date the
instrument and any such process shall be effective, provided that such
effective date shall be at least thirty days after such notification.

(c) Commencing on the effective date of a validated pre-dispositional
risk assessment instrument and any approved process and thereafter, each
probation investigation ordered under subdivision two of this section
shall include the results of the validated risk assessment of the
respondent and process, if any; and a respondent shall not be placed in
accordance with section 353.3 or 353.5 of this part unless the court has
received and given due consideration to the results of such validated
risk assessment and any approved process and made the findings required
pursuant to paragraph (f) of subdivision two of section 352.2 of this
part.

(d) Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary, data
necessary for completion of a pre-dispositional risk assessment
instrument may be shared among law enforcement, probation, courts,
detention administrations, detention providers, presentment agencies,
and the attorney for the child upon retention or appointment solely for
the purpose of accurate completion of such risk assessment instrument. A
copy of the completed pre-dispositional risk assessment instrument shall
be made available to the attorney for the respondent and the applicable
court.

(e) The local probation department shall provide the office of
probation and correctional alternatives with information regarding the
use of the pre-dispositional risk assessment instrument and any risk
assessment process in the time and manner required by the office. The
office may require that such data be submitted to the office
electronically. The office shall not commingle any such information with
any criminal history database. The office shall share such information
with the office of children and family services. The office of children
and family services shall use and share such information only for the
purposes of this section and in accordance with this section. Such
information shall be shared and received in a manner that protects the
confidentiality of such information. The sharing, use, disclosure and
redisclosure of such information to any person, office, or other entity
not specifically authorized to receive it pursuant to this section or
any other law is prohibited.

(f) The family courts shall provide the office of children and family
services with such information, in the time and manner required by the
office, as is necessary for the office to determine the validity and
efficacy of any pre-dispositional risk assessment instrument and process
submitted to the office for approval under this subdivision and to
analyze any disparate impact on dispositional outcomes for juveniles in
accordance with paragraph (a) of this subdivision. The office shall use
and share such information only for the purposes of this section and in
accordance with this section. Such information shall be shared and
received in a manner that protects the confidentiality of such
information. The sharing, use, disclosure and redisclosure of such
information to any person, office, or other entity not specifically
authorized to receive it pursuant to this section or any other law is
prohibited.

(g) The office of probation and correctional alternatives shall
promulgate regulations, in consultation with the office of children and
family services, regarding the role of local probation departments in
the completion and use of the pre-dispositional risk assessment
instrument and in the risk assessment process.

* NB Repealed March 31, 2028

* 2-b. The office of children and family services shall develop a
validated pre-dispositional risk assessment instrument and any risk
assessment process for juvenile delinquents. The office shall
periodically revalidate any approved pre-dispositional risk assessment
instrument. The office shall conspicuously post any approved
pre-dispositional risk assessment instrument and any risk assessment
process on its website and shall confer with appropriate stakeholders,
including but not limited to, attorneys for children, presentment
agencies and the family court, prior to revising any validated
pre-dispositional risk assessment instrument or process. Any such
revised pre-dispositional risk assessment instrument shall be subject to
periodic empirical validation. The office of children and family
services shall consult with individuals with professional research
experience and expertise in criminal justice; social work; juvenile
justice; and applied mathematics, psychometrics and/or statistics to
assist the office in determining the method it will use to: develop,
validate and revalidate such pre-dispositional risk assessment
instrument; develop the risk assessment process; and analyze the
effectiveness of the use of such pre-dispositional risk assessment
instrument and process in accomplishing their intended goals; and
analyze, to the greatest extent possible, any disparate impact on
dispositional outcomes for juveniles based on race, sex, national
origin, economic status, and any other constitutionally protected class,
regarding the use of such instrument. The office shall consult with such
individuals regarding whether it is appropriate to attempt to analyze
whether there is any such disparate impact based on sexual orientation
and, if so, the best methods to conduct such analysis. The office shall
take into consideration any recommendations given by such individuals
involving improvements that could be made to such instrument and
process. The office also shall consult with local probation departments
in the development of the validated pre-dispositional risk assessment
instrument and the revalidation of such instrument. The office of
children and family services shall provide training on the instrument
and any process to the family courts, local probation departments,
presentment agencies and court appointed attorneys for respondents. The
office may determine that a pre-dispositional risk assessment instrument
and any process in use pursuant to subdivision two-a of section 351.1 of
this part may continue to be used pursuant to such subdivision instead
of requiring the use of any instrument or process developed pursuant to
this subdivision.

(a) Once an initial validated risk assessment instrument and risk
assessment process have been developed, the office of children and
family services shall provide the supervising family court judges and
local probation departments with copies of the validated risk assessment
instrument and process and notify them of the effective date of the
instrument and process, which shall be at least six months after such
notification.

(b) Commencing on the effective date of a validated risk assessment
instrument and any risk assessment process and thereafter, each
probation investigation ordered under subdivision two of this section
shall include the results of the validated risk assessment of the
respondent and process, if any; and a respondent shall not be placed in
accordance with section 353.3 or 353.5 of this part unless the court has
received and given due consideration to the results of such validated
risk assessment and any process and made the findings required pursuant
to paragraph (g) of subdivision two of section 352.2 of this part.

(c) Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary, data
necessary for completion of a pre-dispositional risk assessment
instrument may be shared among law enforcement, probation, courts,
detention administrations, detention providers, presentment agencies and
the attorney for the child upon retention or appointment solely for the
purpose of accurate completion of such risk assessment instrument, and a
copy of the completed pre-dispositional risk assessment instrument shall
be made available to the attorney for the respondent and applicable
court.

(d) Local probation departments shall provide the office of probation
and correctional alternatives with information regarding use of the
pre-dispositional risk assessment instrument and any risk assessment
process in the time and manner required by the office. The office may
require that such data be submitted to the office electronically. The
office shall not commingle any such information with any criminal
history database. The office shall share such information with the
office of children and family services. The office of children and
family services shall use and share such information only for the
purposes of this section and in accordance with this section. Such
information shall be shared and received in a manner that protects the
confidentiality of such information. The sharing, use, disclosure and
redisclosure of such information to any person, office, or other entity
not specifically authorized to receive it pursuant to this section or
any other law is prohibited.

(e) Law enforcement and the family courts shall provide the office of
children and family services with such information, in the time and
manner required by the office, as is necessary for the office to
develop, validate and revalidate any such pre-dispositional risk
assessment instrument and process and to analyze any disparate impact on
dispositional outcomes for juveniles in accordance with this section.
The office shall use and share such information only for the purposes of
this section and share it in accordance with this section. Such
information shall be shared and received in a manner that protects the
confidentiality of such information. The sharing, use, disclosure and
redisclosure of such information to any person, office, or other entity
not specifically authorized to receive it pursuant to this section or
any other law is prohibited.

(f) The office of probation and correctional alternatives shall
promulgate regulations, in consultation with the office of children and
family services, regarding the role of local probation departments in
the completion and use of the pre-dispositional risk assessment
instrument and in the risk assessment process.

* NB Repealed March 31, 2028

3. A child shall not be placed in accord with section 353.3 unless the
court has ordered a probation investigation prior to the dispositional
hearing; a child shall not be placed in accord with section 353.4 unless
the court has ordered a diagnostic assessment prior to such hearing.

4. Each investigation report prepared pursuant to this section shall
afford the victim the right to make a statement. Such victim impact
statement shall include an analysis of the victim's version of the
offense, the extent of injury or economic loss and the actual
out-of-pocket loss or damage to the victim, including the amount of
unreimbursed medical expenses, if any, and the views of the victim
relating to disposition including the amount of restitution sought by
the victim, subject to availability of such information. In the case
where the victim is unable to assist in the preparation of the victim
impact statement, the information may be acquired from the victim's
family. Nothing contained in this section shall be interpreted to
require that a victim or his or her family supply information for the
preparation of an investigation report or that the dispositional hearing
should be delayed in order to obtain such information.

5. (a) All diagnostic assessments and probation investigation reports
shall be submitted to the court and made available by the court for
inspection and copying by the presentment agency and the respondent at
least five court days prior to the commencement of the dispositional
hearing. All such reports shall be made available by the court for
inspection and copying by the presentment agency and the respondent in
connection with any appeal in the case.

(b) The victim impact statement shall be made available to the victim
or the victim's family by the presentment agency prior to sentencing.

6. All reports or memoranda prepared or obtained by the probation
service for the purpose of a dispositional hearing shall be deemed
confidential information furnished to the court and shall be subject to
disclosure solely in accordance with this section or as otherwise
provided for by law. Except as provided under section 320.5 such reports
or memoranda shall not be furnished to the court prior to the entry of
an order pursuant to section 345.1.

7. The probation services which prepare the investigation reports
shall be responsible for the collection and transmission to the office
of probation and correctional alternatives, of data on the number of
victim impact statements prepared. Such information shall be transmitted
annually to the office of victim services and included in the office's
biennial report pursuant to subdivision twenty-one of section six
hundred twenty-three of the executive law.