In the Interest of C. B.

The juvenile court erred in transferring a case back to the superior court, where the superior court initially had exclusive jurisdiction but transferred the case to the juvenile court in accordance with O.C.G.A. § 17-7-50.1 after the grand jury failed to indict the juvenile within 180 days of her detention.

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An arrest warrant was issued on July 29, 2009, against then 15-year-old C. B.1 on charges of aggravated sexual battery, aggravated child molestation, aggravated assault, cruelty to children in the first degree and false imprisonment, and it appears undisputed that C. B. has been detained since that date. Because the offenses C. B. was alleged to have committed included aggravated child molestation and aggravated sexual battery, the superior court was vested with exclusive jurisdiction over the case pursuant to OCGA § 15-11-28 b 2 A v & vi, and an indictment was returned against C. B. charging her with these and other offenses on February 1, 2010. Because she was not indicted within 180 days of her detention as required by OCGA § 17-7-50.1, the superior court entered an order granting C. B.’s motion to transfer the case to the juvenile court. However, shortly after the case was transferred to the juvenile court, the State filed a motion to transfer the case back to the superior court pursuant to the provisions of OCGA § 15-11-30.2. Following a hearing, the juvenile court granted the motion, and C.filed the present appeal from that order.2 Because we find that the juvenile court erred by transferring the case back to the superior court under the circumstances here, we reverse.

As the superior court properly found, it was required to transfer the case to the juvenile court pursuant to the mandatory provisions of OCGA § 17-7-50.1, which provide in relevant part as follows: a Any child who is charged with a crime that is within the jurisdiction of the superior court, as provided in Code Section 15-11-28 or 15-11-30.2, who is detained shall within 180 days of the date of detention be entitled to have the charge against him or her presented to the grand jury. . . . Further, subsection b of that Code Section provides that:

In the Interest of C. B.

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