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Harris v. Calendine

West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals
160 W. Va. 172, 233 S.E.2d 318 (1977)

Written by Mary Katherine Cunningham, JD

Facts

Harris (defendant) missed 50 days of school. The appropriate state agencies, represented by officials including Calendine (plaintiff), filed a petition asking the juvenile court to find then 15-year-old Harris neglected or delinquent due to his absences from school. Harris’s mother and stepfather received a summons, and Harris later appeared in juvenile court with his attorney and his mother. At the adjudication hearing, Harris did not deny the allegations, and the juvenile court adjudicated Harris as a delinquent child. The juvenile court then sentenced Harris to a period of confinement until his sixteenth birthday, and the state committed Harris to an industrial school. When he turned 16 years old, the state reassigned Harris to a youth center. Harris remained in state custody until he filed a writ of habeas corpus, challenging the constitutionality of West Virginia Code Sections 49-1-4 and 49-5-11.

Rule of Law

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Issue

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Holding and Reasoning (Neely, J.)

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A "yes" or "no" answer to the question framed in the issue section;
A summary of the majority or plurality opinion, using the CREAC method; and
The procedural disposition (e.g., reversed and remanded, affirmed, etc.).

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