The purpose of § 6-1901 is to provide the courts and probation with a procedure to ensure prompt court review of requests for the imposition of custodial sanctions.

   (A) When a probationer, who is eligible for a custodial sanction pursuant to Neb. Rev. Stat. § 29-2266.02(3)(b), admits to a violation of probation, consents to a custodial sanction, and waives the right to a hearing in writing, or when such probationer declines to acknowledge the violation of probation, the violation report and request for a custodial sanction shall be forwarded by the probation office to the court within 2 working days following the probation officer's detection of the violation, for judicial approval or denial.

   (B) If the probationer admits to a violation of probation, consents to a custodial sanction, and waives the right to a hearing in writing, the court shall either: (1) if the court approves the custodial sanction, within 5 judicial days of receiving the violation report and request for a custodial sanction, issue and distribute a commitment order with instructions as to the time, date, institutional location, and duration of the custodial sanction; or (2) schedule a hearing to determine whether the requested sanction is too severe or not severe enough.

   (C) If the probationer declines to acknowledge the violation or declines to agree to the custodial sanction, the probation officer shall immediately obtain a hearing date from the court.

   (D) The court shall make every effort to conduct a hearing within 10 judicial days following receipt of the notification of violation report and request for a custodial sanction. If a hearing cannot be held within this timeframe, one shall be scheduled at the earliest opportunity. If the probationer does not have counsel and requests counsel but cannot afford one, the court shall appoint counsel to represent the probationer prior to the hearing. The probation officer shall also provide notice of the hearing to the appropriate prosecuting attorney and to the probationer.

   (E) The court shall receive into evidence the affidavit in support of custodial sanction and any evidence provided by the probationer or counsel for the State or counsel for the defendant. An assigned probation officer shall appear. The hearing may be held, and attorneys, the probation officer, and the probationer may appear, by way of video or other technology when available. 

   (F) After the hearing, if the court determines that the probationer has violated probation and that a custodial sanction should be imposed, the court shall issue and distribute a commitment order with instructions as to the time, date, institutional location, and duration of the custodial sanction. Otherwise, the court shall issue an order denying the request for custodial sanction.

§ 6-1901 adopted December 16, 2015; § 6-1901 amended June 29, 2016.

   The purpose of § 6-1902 is to ensure compliance with the Interstate Compact for Adult Offender Supervision rules and regulations, which carry the weight of federal law and require that probationers transferred between states be supervised as would probationers in the state in which they are supervised. See Neb. Rev. Stat. §§ 29-2639 and 29-2640. Probationers under supervision in Nebraska, but on probation from other states, are also subject to the application of custodial sanctions while being supervised in Nebraska. The following is intended to ensure prompt court review of requests for the imposition of custodial sanctions.

   (A) The presiding district court judge, or designee, in the jurisdiction in which the probationer is under supervision shall serve as the authorizing court for purposes of administrative and custodial sanctions in accordance with § 6-1901. 

§ 6-1902 adopted December 16, 2015.

   The purpose of § 6-1903 is to ensure the length of supervision is consistent with the risk and need of individuals and fully incorporated into probation supervision practices. The following is intended to provide structure for early discharge where appropriate, for low to moderate risk to reoffend individuals, thereby maximizing probation resources.

   (A) Pursuant to Neb. Rev. Stat. § 29-2263(1) and (2), the probation officer may submit an application for early discharge at any time. The probation officer shall submit an application for early discharge if the following have been met:

   (1) Three-quarters of the imposed sentence is served;

   (2) No major violations during the preceding 6 months;

   (3) The individual is in compliance with all other conditions, including, but not limited to, being current on fees owed and having paid all restitution, court costs, and fines in full; and

   (4) The assessed risk level indicates the individual is at a reduced risk of recidivism.

   (B) Pursuant to Neb. Rev. Stat. § 29-2263(1) and (2), the court may consider early discharge at any time. The court shall consider early discharge of eligible probationers, upon application, who have served at least three-quarters of the period of probation and after review of a discharge summary received from the probation office. The discharge summary shall provide information regarding performance while under supervision, demonstrated behavioral change, and reduction in risk including, but not limited to, no major violations during the preceding 6 months and compliance with all conditions, including fees, restitution, court costs, and fines.

   (C) Upon approval by the court, the order shall be filed with the Court Clerk and notice given to the probationer and counsel of record. Victims shall be notified if required by law. Upon denial by the court, the court shall communicate to the probation officer who shall notify the probationer. 

§ 6-1903 adopted December 16, 2015.

   The purpose of § 6-1904 is to ensure that as a part of a determinate sentence, a post-release supervision plan is created to offer a smooth, meaningful, and comprehensive transition of probationers from a term of incarceration to community supervision. A post-release supervision plan shall be confidential.

   (A) In cases requiring a determinate sentence pursuant to Neb. Rev. Stat. § 29-2204.02, the court shall, at the time a sentence is pronounced, impose a term of incarceration and a term of post-release supervision pursuant to Neb. Rev. Stat. § 29-2204.02(1), and shall enter a separate post-release supervision order that includes conditions pursuant to Neb. Rev. Stat. § 29-2262. The court shall specify, on the record, that conditions of the order of post-release supervision may be modified or eliminated pursuant to Neb. Rev. Stat. § 29-2263(3).

   (B) The court shall receive a post-release supervision plan no later than 45 days prior to the individual’s anticipated date of release from the Department of Correctional Services. The court shall consider modification to the post-release supervision order, upon application and recommendation, based upon the post-release supervision plan from the probation office. The plan shall be collaboratively prepared by the Office of Probation Administration and the Department of Correctional Services to provide information regarding performance and programming while incarcerated, an updated risk/needs assessment, along with a community needs and service assessment.

   (C) The court shall receive a post-release supervision plan no later than 30 days prior to the individual’s anticipated date of release from the local county jail. The court shall consider modification to the post-release supervision order, upon application and recommendation, based upon the post-release supervision plan from the probation office. When an individual has been incarcerated in a local county jail, the post-release supervision plan shall be defined as the presentence investigation, or a subsequent risk and needs assessment, and other available information.

   (D) No later than 30 days prior to the individual’s anticipated date of release from the Department of Correctional Services, the court shall, if applicable, modify the post-release supervision order. No later than 15 days prior to the individual’s anticipated date of release from local county jail, the court shall, if applicable, modify the post-release supervision order. 

§ 6-1904 adopted December 16, 2015; § 6-1904(A) adopted June 29, 2016. 

   The purpose of § 6-1905 is to provide the courts with a procedure to ensure that fees, filings, custodial sanctions, and appointment of counsel on transferred Interstate Compact cases pursuant to the Interstate Compact for Adult Offender Supervision are recorded in JUSTICE, thus promoting uniform, statewide recordkeeping. See Neb. Rev. Stat. §§ 29-2639 and 29-2640.

   (A) Upon receipt of the signed Nebraska Interstate Compact Offender Agreement, the Nebraska Compact Office shall forward, within 5 judicial days, the following to the District or County Court Clerk in the county in which the probationer will be supervised:

   (1) The probation terms and conditions from the sending state.

   (2) The Nebraska Interstate Compact Agreement signed by both the probationer and the supervising probation officer.

   (B) Upon receipt of the signed Nebraska Interstate Compact Offender Agreement, and within 5 judicial days, the Court Clerk in the receiving county shall enter the transferred case details into JUSTICE and assign the case a distinguishing case number denoting the case is an Interstate Compact transfer case.

   (C) Unless otherwise expressly provided by law, no filing fees or court costs shall be assessed in an Interstate Compact transfer case.

§ 6-1905 adopted December 16, 2015.

   (A) Inspection of presentence reports under Neb. Rev. Stat. § 29-2261 and predispositional reports of juveniles under Neb. Rev. Stat. § 43-2,108(4) ("reports") by the prosecuting attorney, juvenile's counsel, and defense counsel shall be by electronic means as determined and developed by the Administrative Office of the Courts and Probation unless the trial court determines such access is not available.

   (B) All probation districts shall follow a standardized procedure and process for creating, storing, inspecting, and sharing reports. The Administrative Office of the Courts and Probation shall provide instruction on procedures so that each probation district is creating and sharing the same information in the same manner.

   (C) Once a court orders a report under § 29-2261 or § 43-281, and the report is completed for a criminal defendant or juvenile, the probation office shall convert the report and any evaluation(s) and/or examination(s) into a portable document format (PDF), bearing the file extension ".pdf" containing a computer-readable image of a document, capable of being viewed with a recent version of Adobe Reader or similar software.

   (D) The Probation Office shall upload the report into the probation case management system. Once the document has been uploaded, it will be available for the judge to view via the court case management system and via the court-authorized service provider judge portal.

   (E) Once the report is received electronically, the judge may then open electronic access to the prosecuting attorney, juvenile's counsel, and defense attorney entered on the case, as specified in the court's case management system, JUSTICE. Attorney access is via the Internet through the court-authorized service provider for E-Filing. A judge may provide access to the report to another judge who may be sentencing the same individual in a different court and may provide access to the report to any other attorney authorized by statute to have such access.

   (1) The report and its contents shall not be disclosed directly or indirectly by the attorneys or the trial judge absent a court order specifying to whom the report may be disclosed.

   (2) Attorneys shall not permit others to use their log-in or password information to view or inspect reports in the E-Filing portal.

   (3) Except as set forth in § 6-1906(E)(5), attorneys shall not duplicate reports by printing, copying, or saving them, or through screenshots, photographs, or other measures. Anyone determined to have duplicated a report by any means, or otherwise breached the confidentiality of a report, may be charged with contempt of court and/or referred to the Counsel for Discipline for further action.

   (4) The trial court shall determine when access to the report through the portal by the named attorneys shall cease.

   (5) An attorney may make one printed copy of a report or utilize one electronic copy of a report on a single electronic device by complying with all of the following conditions:

   (a) The attorney’s name and bar number must appear on each page of the printed document or electronic copy;

   (b) The printed copy or the electronic device must remain within the attorney’s possession and control at all times;

   (c) The juvenile’s counsel or defense counsel shall not show or display the report to any person other than his or her client who is the subject of the report;

   (d) The attorney shall not permit any person, including the client who is the subject of the report, to exercise possession or control of the report, or to copy any of its contents by any method;

   (e) The attorney shall not transmit any such copy by any means to any person who has not been authorized by the judge to receive a copy;

   (f) Immediately after sentence has been imposed in a criminal matter, the prosecuting attorney and defense counsel shall:

   (i) Deliver the printed copy to a probation officer present at sentencing or to the local probation office for destruction, or comply with any alternative instructions of the sentencing judge to accomplish destruction;

   (ii) Shall immediately and permanently delete the electronic copy.

   (g) Juvenile hearings.

   (i) The court shall provide access to reports and evaluations of the juvenile to the juvenile’s counsel and the prosecuting attorney prior to any hearing in which the report or evaluation will be relied upon;

   (ii) Juvenile counsel who maintain a printed or electronic copy of a report and/or evaluations to be used at a subsequent hearing are not in violation of this rule as long as the records are not distributed or confidentiality is not breached;

   (iii) If juvenile court jurisdiction is terminated, or the juvenile’s counsel withdraws or is no longer counsel, the juvenile’s counsel shall deliver any printed reports or evaluations to the probation office for destruction, or comply with any alternative instruction of the judge to accomplish such destruction, and shall permanently delete the electronic copy of any report and/or evaluation.

   (6) Substitute attorney compliance and reporting violations.

   (a) Any attorney who substitutes for the original attorney shall be responsible to comply with all of these conditions;

   (b) Any probation officer or probation staff member who becomes aware of any failure to comply with any of these conditions shall promptly notify the district Chief Probation Officer, who shall notify the judge; and

   (c) Any judge or attorney who becomes aware of any failure to comply with any of these conditions shall promptly take appropriate action, which may include reporting the same to the court and/or Counsel for Discipline.

   (F) Once the Probation Office completes a report, any addenda or supplements to the report shall be given to the Probation Office, even if personally received by the trial court, for inclusion in the report. If addenda or supplements are received by the court on the date of sentencing or disposition, then the court shall provide the original to the Probation Office as soon as practicable for inclusion in the report and may allow the prosecuting attorney and defense counsel to inspect a copy.

   (G) Appeals. If the conviction, adjudication, disposition, and/or sentence is appealed, transfer of the report to the appellate courts shall be electronic, in a manner prescribed by the Administrative Office of the Courts and Probation.  This procedure shall be deemed to be in compliance with the provisions of chapter 2 of these rules.

   (1) Attorney access is through the E-Filing portal. The sentencing or juvenile judge shall open electronic access to the State’s attorney, juvenile’s counsel, and defense counsel entered on the case. The provisions of § 6-1906(E) (1), (2), and (5) shall apply to reports viewed in the appellate courts except that after issuance of the mandate in the appeal, counsel shall proceed as provided in § 6-1906(E)(5)(f)(i) or (ii). Electronic access shall also be available in the office of the Clerk of the Supreme Court and Court of Appeals using the terminal provided.  

   (2) Whenever the mandate in the appeal has issued, access to the report through the portal by the named attorneys shall cease.

   (H) Access to the report by the appellate courts for cases on appeal shall be through the appellate courts' secure systems.

§ 6-1906 adopted June 29, 2016; § 6-1906 amended September 18, 2019.