## Facts

- Diane Connie Johnson was sixteen when an automobile she was driving, while unlicensed and with her boyfriend’s permission, mounted a sidewalk, struck three children, and killed one.
- The incident occurred when Johnson, attempting a wide turn, pressed the accelerator instead of the brake; the State alleged her conduct amounted to gross negligence resulting in death.
- Johnson had no prior juvenile record and was described as an above-average, responsible student active in school and church activities.
- Social services reports and testimony indicated she was mentally and physically sound, remorseful, and a strong candidate for rehabilitation within the juvenile system.
- The State filed a juvenile delinquency petition in the Juvenile Court of Baltimore City and sought waiver of juvenile jurisdiction for adult prosecution.
- After a waiver hearing, the juvenile court granted waiver, citing the severe and tragic nature of the offense and subsequent events, while also commending Johnson’s record.

## Issues

1. Whether the juvenile court abused its discretion by waiving juvenile jurisdiction and transferring Johnson for adult criminal prosecution under Md. Ann. Code art. 26, § 70-4(a).
2. Whether the juvenile court erred by treating the seriousness of the offense as controlling rather than meaningfully weighing all statutory waiver factors.

## Decision

- The Maryland Court of Special Appeals reversed the waiver order and remanded for further proceedings.
- The court held the juvenile court abused its discretion by allowing the tragic severity of the offense to override the statutory scheme requiring consideration of multiple factors.
- The court concluded the record showed strong amenability to juvenile rehabilitation and no adequate, factor-based justification for waiver.

## Legal Principles

- Juvenile law is primarily rehabilitative: it aims to provide care and protection, remove the taint of criminality, and substitute treatment and rehabilitation consistent with public safety.
- Waiver of juvenile jurisdiction is an exceptional measure and is strictly construed against waiver because it removes a child from juvenile court protections.
- Before waiver, the court must conduct a full investigation and consider statutory factors, including: the child’s age; mental and physical condition; amenability to treatment; nature of the offense and participation; and public safety.
- The seriousness of the offense is relevant but cannot be the sole or controlling basis for waiver; waiver must rest on a supported finding that the particular child is not a proper subject for juvenile rehabilitative measures.
- A waiver decision must reflect a reasoned weighing of the statutory factors; failure to do so constitutes an abuse of discretion.

## Conclusion

The appellate court reversed the juvenile court’s waiver because the record showed Johnson was a strong candidate for juvenile rehabilitation, and the waiver rested primarily on the tragic outcome of the offense rather than a balanced application of the statutory waiver factors.


Matter of Diane Connie Johnson, 304 A.2d 859 (Md. Ct. Spec. App. 1973)