State in the Interest of J.S., A-85 September Term 2008; Supreme Court; opinion by LaVecchia, J.; decided July 8, 2010. On certification to the Appellate Division. DDS No. 14-1-xxxx [32 pp.]
As a minor, J.S. sexually assaulted his younger sister. However, he was 21 years old when the juvenile court entered an order adjudicating him a delinquent based on the conduct that had occurred years earlier. The court’s order required the Division of Youth and Family Services (DYFS), an agency within the Department of Children and Families (DCF), to provide him with sex offender treatment, notwithstanding that neither J.S. nor his family previously had any involvement with DYFS. Although not a party to J.S.’s delinquency proceedings, DYFS sought reconsideration, and then appealed. DYFS claimed that the court lacked authority to require DYFS to bear the responsibility of providing sex offender services to the adult J.S. because he was not within the category of persons to be serviced under DYFS’s authorizing statutes.
