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Rule 5.758.Requirements for detention; prima facie case

Division 3. Juvenile Rules · Chapter 13. Cases Petitioned Under Sections 601 and 602 · Article 1. Initial Appearance · Last amended 2007 · Last verified September 10, 2026

In one sentenceRule 5.758 requires the court to release a child unless three findings are made, and bars detaining a status offender in a secure facility.

Full Text of Rule 5.758

Text sizeJump to: (a) (b)

(a) Requirements for detention (§§ 635, 636)
The court must release the child unless the court finds that:
(1) A prima facie showing has been made that the child is described by section 601 or 602;
(2) Continuance in the home is contrary to the child’s welfare; and
(3) One or more of the grounds for detention stated in rule 5.760 exist. However, except as provided in sections 636.2 and 207, no child taken into custody solely on the basis of being a person described in section 601 may be detained in juvenile hall or any other secure facility.
(b) Detention in adult facility
A child must not be detained in a jail or lockup used for the confinement of adults, except as provided in section 207.1.
End

Plain-English Summary

Release is the starting point. The court must release the child unless it finds a prima facie showing that the child is described by the status offense or delinquency statute, that continuance in the home is contrary to the child’s welfare, and that one or more of the grounds for detention exists.

A limit follows immediately, and it is categorical: except in the narrow statutory situations, no child taken into custody solely as a status offender may be detained in juvenile hall or any other secure facility. Running away or truancy does not put a child behind a locked door.

Nor may a child be detained in a jail or lockup used to confine adults, except as the statute allows.

Frequently Asked Questions

What must the court find before detaining a child in a delinquency case?

A prima facie showing that the child is described by section 601 or 602; that continuance in the home is contrary to the child’s welfare; and that one or more of the grounds for detention in rule 5.760 exists. Otherwise the child must be released.

Can a status offender be held in juvenile hall?

No — except as sections 636.2 and 207 provide. A child taken into custody solely on the basis of being a person described in section 601 may not be detained in juvenile hall or any other secure facility.

Can a child be held in an adult jail?

No. A child must not be detained in a jail or lockup used for the confinement of adults, except as provided in section 207.1.

Amendment History

Rule 5.758 amended and renumbered effective January 1, 2007; repealed and adopted as rule 1474 effective January 1, 1998; previously amended effective July 1, 2002.

(Subd (a) amended effective January 1, 2007; previously amended effective July 1, 2002.) (Subd (b) amended effective July 1, 2002.)

Source & verification. Rule text is reproduced verbatim from the Judicial Council of California. Adopted by the Judicial Council of California. Last verified September 10, 2026. · Official source
Also known as: requirements for detention delinquency Californiastatus offender secure facility prohibitionprima facie showing section 602 detentionchild detained adult jail prohibition