15. Whenever it shall appear to the court, in the case of any neglected child or of any child in need of more suitable guardianship that has been taken from its home or the custody of its parents, that conditions have so changed that it is consistent with the public good and the welfare of said child that the parents again have the custody of said child, the court may make a suitable order in the premises. In committing any child to any custodial agency or placing it under any guardianship other than that of its natural guardians, the court shall, as far as practicable, select as the custodial agency some individual holding the same religious belief as the parents of said child, or some institution or association governed by persons of like religious faith, unless said institution is a state or municipal institution. § 16. Whenever, in the course of a proceeding instituted under this act, it shall appear to the said court that the welfare of said child will be promoted by the appointment of an individual as general guardian of his property, and of his person, when such child is not committed to any institution or to the custody of any incorporated society, the court shall have jurisdiction to make such appointment either upon the application of the child or some relative or friend, or upon the court's own motion; and in that event an order to show cause may be made by the court, to be served upon the parent or parents of said child in such manner and for such time prior to the hearing as the court may deem reasonable. In any case arising under this act, the court may determine as between parents whether the father or mother shall have the custody, tuition and direction of said child. § 17. Nothing herein contained shall be construed as abridging the general chancery power and jurisdiction exercised by the supreme court over the persons and estates of minors, nor as abridg ing the authority of the surrogate to appoint guardians for infants as now provided by law. § 18. It shall be the duty of the county judge of said county, at least once a year, to visit each institution in which there shall be at the time any child under commitment pursuant to this act, and the managers and officers of said institution shall accord to said judge full opportunity to inspect the said institution in all its departments, to the end that the court may be advised as to the propriety of continuing the use of said institution as a custodial agency; and said judges may examine witnesses under oath within the county where said institution is located, or appoint a referee for the purpose of obtaining any information as to the efficiency and character of such institution. 19. The court shall have power to devise and publish rules and regulate the procedure for cases coming within the provisions of this act, and for the conduct of all probation and other officers of the court in such cases, and such rules shall be enforced and construed beneficially for the remedial purposes embraced herein. The court may devise and cause to be printed for public use such forms for records and for the various petitions, orders, process and other papers in the cases coming under this act as shall meet the requirements thereof; and all the expenses incurred by the court in complying with the provisions of this act shall be a county charge. 20. All provisions of the penal law or code of criminal procedure or other statute inconsistent with or repugnant to this act shall be considered inapplicable to the cases arising under this act. AN ACT conferring jurisdiction upon the county court of Monroe county over cases involving offenses against children under sixteen years of age, as defined in article forty-four of the penal law, and regulating the procedure therein. Chapter 612, Laws of 1910. Section 1. Jurisdiction is hereby conferred upon the county court of Monroe county to hear, try and determine all cases arising in said county under article forty-four of the penal law. 2. The prosecution of a person charged with any offense under said article forty-four less than the grade of felony may be instituted by the filing of an information, no indictment being necessary, and a warrant may be issued by the court or one of the judges thereof, and all subsequent proceedings shall be carried on in the same way as if the person prosecuted upon an indictment for said offense, except that the trial shall be had before the court without a jury unless the court, in its discretion, grants a jury trial. The said county court and the judges thereof shall have all the power exercised by magistrates in regard to the issuing of subpoenas, the examination of witnesses and taking of depositions prior to the issuing of a warrant in such cases. This section shall not apply to cases under section four hundred and eighty-six of said penal law. § 3. Nothing in this act shall be held to deprive police courts, courts of special sessions and the magistrates holding the same of concurrent jurisdiction to hear and dispose of cases embraced within section two of this act, not pending in the county court. 31. Disposition, in certain cases, of children charged with misdemeanor. 8 25. Definitions. The word child when used in this act shall refer to and mean a person under the age of sixteen years, and the word adult when so used shall refer to and mean a person sixteen years of age and over. § 26. Separate court for children. There shall always be at least one separate part of the court designated as the children's court for the hearing and disposition of proceedings and cases involving the trial or commitment of children. § 27. Place of detention. The city of Syracuse shall provide a place of detention to which children shall be brought immediately after arrest, and wherein they may be detained pending hearing or trial, whether as witnesses or defendants; and to which they may be committed after hearing or trial for not to exceed thirty days. No adult charged with any offense shall be detained in or committed to such place of detention. The commissioner of public safety shall appoint a superintendent of said place of detention, and such other employees as the board of estimate and apportionment of the city of Syracuse may prescribe; and the salaries or compensation of such superintendent and other employees shall be fixed by the board of estimate and apportionment. 8 28. Duty of officer arresting child. Whenever, under any provision of law, a child is taken into custody, it shall be the duty of the officer having the child in charge, and with all convenient speed, to take such child to the children's court if in session, and if not, then to the place of detention. 29. Bail. In addition to the officers now employed by law to take bail or recognizance in the case of a child charged with an offense, the court shall have power to designate the superintendent or other employee of said place of detention for children, or one or more of its clerks, officers or other employees, who shall have authority to take bail in such cases. Such designation shall be made by the justice sitting in the children's court, and may be revoked at the pleasure of the justice making the designation. So far as practicable, it shall be the duty of the justice sitting at children's court to require that some person so authorized shall be at the place of detention for the purpose of taking bail or recognizance at any time, day or night. -- 30. Jurisdiction. The children's court shall have in the first instance exclusive jurisdiction to try and determine all offenses of juvenile delinquency committed within the city of Syracuse, and all offenses committed by children within said city not punishable by death or life imprisonment; and the justice thereof shall have power to hear and adjudicate all charges against children of the grade of juvenile delinquency and all charges coming within the summary jurisdiction of the justice of said court, and in all cases where the court or justice thereof has power to commit children as provided by law. 31. Disposition in certain cases of children charged with an offense. Whenever a child is charged with an offense of juvenile delinquency, which if committed by an adult would be a misdemeanor, or a felony not punishable by death or life imprisonment, the justice sitting in the children's court shall, as far as is consistent with the interest of the child and of the state, consider the child not as upon trial for the commission of a crime, but as a child in need of the care and protection of the state; to that end he may, if the child or either parent or any guardian or custodian of such child shall so request, before proceeding with the trial of the child for the offense charged, or at any stage of the trial and before conviction, suspend the trial and inquire into all the facts and surrounding circumstances of the case, and if the justice shall so find, he may in his discretion in lieu of proceeding with the trial, adjudge the child to be in need of the care and protection of the state, and thereupon he shall deal with such child in all respects in the manner provided in section four hundred and eightysix of the penal law in the case of a child not having proper guardianship; and in a case where he shall so adjudge, before or instead of committing such child to confinement in any institution, he may commit him to the place of detention for children provided for in this act, or place such child on probation. ARTICLE III. PROBATION. Section 32. Appointment and compensation of probation officers. 33. Powers and duties of probation officers.. 34. Children; period of probation. 35. Adults; period of probation. § 32. Appointment, removal and compensation of probation officers. The justice shall have authority to appoint one paid probation officer, and such additional paid probation officers as the board of estimate and apportionment may from time to time authorize. The justice may at pleasure remove any probation officer. The justice may designate one of the probation officers so appointed to be chief probation officer. The board of estimate and apportionment shall fix the salary or compensation of the paid probation officers appointed in pursuance hereof, and shall provide for the payment of such expenses as are necessarily incurred by them in the performance of their duties. The justice shall have power to appoint such volunteer probation officers as he may see fit. 33. Powers and duties of probation officers. The probation officers shall have all the powers and duties now conferred upon probation officers by the code of criminal procedure and by law. They shall keep such records and conform to such rules and regulations as may be established by the justice. The chief probation officer shall perform such additional duties as may be re |