From Court records beginning Dec 2023, the defense used labels alleging Autism and ADHD to describe the juvenile defendant, DR, and the basis to remove him from adult jail and send him to juvenile detention.
However, after the defense called DR's instructors as witnesses to make their case about how the defendant's civil rights were being violated by holding DR at the adult Metro West Detention Center, the trial Judge revealed that it had a good 7-8 years of school records which did not indicate DR to have any diagnosis such as autism or ADHD prior to his incarceration, and denied the defense request to remove DR from adult jail.
And DR has remained segregated along with other juveniles in the adult jail ever since. Important to note that the average length of stay in secure juvenile detention such as the Miami Dade Juvenile Detention Center is approximately 15 days, and not more than two years such as DP who is awaiting trial in Adult Court.
More recently, in January 2025, the defense argued DR's jail conditions and lack of an "individualized Education Plan (IEP)" by Miami-Dade County Public School District as reasons to again return DR to juvenile detention.
Instead of falling for and ruling on the defense allegations, the Court cited three of the Court's concerns for DR including: his education time (i.e., DR is currently enrolled in a combination of individualized and group classes), whether DR was receiving enough time outside his cell, and his daily exposure to sunlight, and gave the parties three weeks to collaborate and present proposals for areas where consensus could not be reached.
IMO, the Appellate Opinion per the defendant's petition, filed on Jan 2, 2025, quashing the lower court's 2024 Order for the juvenile to share his "medical mental health, psychological and social work records” with counsel for Miami-Dade County Corrections,” protecting the privacy of the juvenile's patient records, most likely confirmed what the trial Court cited earlier (before the protective Order issued) that there was no learning disability diagnosis for DP before his incarceration.
A Miami-Dade County judge is expected to decide Friday whether Derek Rosa, 13, who is accused of killing his mother, Irina Garcia, 39, in October will be transferred back to juvenile detention.
www.local10.com
Derek Rosa, the 14-year-old charged with fatally stabbing his mother in their Hialeah apartment in October 2023, appeared via Zoom for a court hearing early Thursday morning.
www.local10.com
Derek Rosa v. State of Florida
law.justia.com
www.djj.state.fl.us
