§ 3-827. Confidentiality of records(Abrogation of amendment effective September 30, 2019)

   (a) In general. --

   (1) All court records under this subtitle pertaining to a child shall be confidential and their contents may not be divulged, by subpoena or otherwise, except by order of the court on good cause shown.

   (2) This subsection does not prohibit review of a court record by:

      (i) Personnel of the court;

      (ii) A party;

      (iii) Counsel for a party;

      (iv) A Court-Appointed Special Advocate for the child;

      (v) Authorized personnel of the Social Services Administration and local departments in order to conduct a child abuse or neglect investigation or to comply with requirements imposed under Title IV-E of the Social Security Act; or

      (vi) The Baltimore City Health Department's Office of Youth Violence Prevention:

         1. If the Baltimore City Health Department's Office of Youth Violence Prevention is providing treatment or care to a child who is the subject of the record, for a purpose relevant to the provision of the treatment or care;

         2. If the record concerns a child convicted of a crime or adjudicated delinquent for an act that caused a death or near fatality; or

         3. If the record concerns a victim of a crime of violence, as defined in § 14-101 of the Criminal Law Article, who is a child residing in Baltimore City, for the purpose of developing appropriate programs and policies aimed at reducing violence against children in Baltimore City.

   (3) Information obtained from a court record is subject to the provisions of § 1-201, 1-202, 1-204, and 1-205 of the Human Services Article.

   (4) (i) The Baltimore City Health Department's Office of Youth Violence Prevention shall be liable for the unauthorized release of a court record it reviews under this subsection.

      (ii) Within 180 days after the Baltimore City Health Department's Office of Youth Violence Prevention reviews a court record under this subsection, the Baltimore City Health Department's Office of Youth Violence Prevention shall submit a report to the court detailing the purposes for which the record was used.

(b) Sealing of court records. --

   (1) On its own motion or on petition, and for good cause shown, the court:

      (i) May order the court records of a child sealed; and

      (ii) Shall order them sealed after the child has reached the age of 21.

   (2) If sealed, the court records of a child may not be opened, for any purpose, except by order of the court on good cause shown.

HISTORY: 2013, ch. 474.