Code for girls, boys and adolescents

INDEX

Book One:

Definitions, Protection System and Fundamental Rights of Children and Adolescents

Title I:

General Principles……………………………………………………………………………. 13

Title II:

Guarantees and Fundamental Rights………………………………………………. 17

Chapter I:

General Provisions…………………………………………………………………….. 17

Chapter II:

Fundamental Rights……………………………………………………………………. 18

Chapter III:

Right to Health……………………………………………………………………………….. 27

Chapter IV:

Right to Labor Protection for Children and Adolescents…. 30

Chapter V:

On the Right to Education………………………………………………………………… 33

Title III:

National System for the Protection of Children's Rights,

Girls and Adolescents………………………………………………………………………….. 38

Chapter I:

General Provisions…………………………………………………………………….. 38

Chapter II:

Policies and Programs………………………………………………………………. 39

Chapter III:

Financing of the National System

Protection of the Rights of Children and Adolescents………….. 41

Book Two:

Family Law

Title I:

General Provisions…………………………………………………………………….. 43

Title II:

On Filiation………………………………………………………………………………………. 44 Title III: On the Authority of the Father and the Mother………………………………………….. 46 Title IV: On Guardianship and Visitation Rights………………………………………………. 51 Chapter I: General Provisions on Guardianship………………………………………… 51 Chapter II: Guardianship Procedure…………………………………………………………………… 52 Chapter III: Visitation Rights………………………………………………………………………………. 54 Chapter IV: Petition and Judgment for Guardianship and Visitation Rights………………………………………………………………………………………………… 54 Chapter V: On the Illegal Transfer or Retention of a Child or Adolescent …. 58 Title V: Filiation by Adoption……………………………………………………………………….. 58 Chapter I: General Provisions on Adoption …………………………………… 58 Chapter II: Types of Adoption……………………………………………………………… 59 Chapter III: National Privileged Adoption………………………………………………….. 60 Section I: Substantive Conditions for Adoption

Privileged 60

Subsection I: Persons who may adopt and be adopted 60 Subsection II: Conditions relating to adoptees 62 Section II: Formal conditions of adoption

Privileged 63

Section III:

Privileged Adoption Procedure 65

Subsection I:

Administrative Phase of Privileged Adoption 65

Subsection II:

Administrative Jurisdictional Phase of Privileged Adoption…69 Subsection III: Privileged Adoption Judgments and their Publication 72

Subsection IV:

Nullity of Adoption 76 Chapter IV: International Adoption………………………………………………………………… 77 Section I:

General Information on International Adoption 77

Section II:

Competition 78

Title VI: On Food…………………………………………………………………………………….. 79 Section I:

Generalities 79

Section II:

Procedures 80

Section III:

Measures Ordered by Judgment 83

Section IV: Execution and Appeals of Alimony Judgments 86 Title VII: Guardianship, Family Council and Approval………………………………………. 87 Title VIII: Special Procedures……………………………………………………………………. 88 Chapter I: Patrimony of Children and Adolescents Threatened by the Administrator……………………………………………… 88 Chapter II: Authorization to Travel…………………………………………………………………… 89 Chapter III: Statute of Limitations…………………………………………………………………………………….. 90 Book Three:

From the Jurisdiction of Children and Adolescents

Title I: General Provisions……………………………………………………………………….. 91 Title II: On the Criminal Justice System for Adolescents…………………………………… 97 Chapter I: General Provisions……………………………………………………………………. 97 Chapter II: Procedural Guarantees………………………………………………………………………….. 99 Chapter III: On Actions in the Criminal Justice System for Adolescents………………………………………………………………. 101 Section I:

From Criminal Action 101

Section II:

From Civil Action 103

Section III: Forms of Early Termination of

Process 104

Chapter IV: On the Procedural Subjects…………………………………………………………………. 104 Section I:

Of the Adolescent Person 104

Section II:

From the Technical Defense 108

Section III: The Public Prosecutor's Office for Children and Adolescents…………. 110 Section IV: Judicial Police for Adolescents……………………………….. 112 Section V: The Multidisciplinary Team for Comprehensive Care……………….. 114 Chapter V: Evidence………………………………………………………………….. 117 Chapter VI: Criminal Proceedings for Adolescents……………………………….. 117 Section I: General Provisions…………………………………………………………….. 117 Section II: Precautionary Measures…………………………………………………………………….. 120 Section III: The Investigation…………………………………………………………………………… 125 Section IV: The Trial on the Merits………………………………………………………………………… 131 Section V: Appeals……………………………………………………………………………. 136 Section VI: Habeas Corpus……………………………………………….. 140 Section VII: Amparo Appeal………………………………………………………………. 140 Chapter VII: On Sanctions……………………………………………………………………………….. 140 Section I: General Provisions…………………………………………………………….. 140 Section II: Definition of Sanctions………………………………………………………… 143 Section III: On Sanctions Involving Deprivation of Liberty……………………………………. 145 Chapter VIII: Execution and Compliance with Criminal Sanctions by Adolescents……………………………………………….. 148 Section I: General Principles and Rights During the

Execution and Compliance with Sanctions 149

Chapter IX: On the Authorities for the Execution and Compliance of Sanctions…………………………………………………………………………….. 153 Section I: On Competence in the Control of

Execution of Sanctions 153

Section II: Of the Administrative Body in Charge of

Execution and Compliance with Sanctions 155

Section III: On Judgments Imposing Sanctions

Socio-educational and Guidance and Supervision Orders 159

Section IV: Execution of Guidance Orders and

Supervision 162

Section V: On the Execution of Deprivation Sanctions

of Freedom during leisure time 166

Title III: Exceptional Powers of the Children and Adolescents Jurisdiction………………………………………………………………. 169 Chapter I: Offenses Carrying Pecuniary Sanctions……………………. 169 Title IV: Jurisdiction of the Ordinary Criminal Courts………………………………. 172 Chapter I: Offenses Carrying Sanctions of Deprivation of Liberty………………………………………………………………………………………. 172 Book Four: National Council for Children and Adolescents (CONANI) and Measures for the Protection and Restitution of Rights Title I: Of the National Council for Children and Adolescents (CONANI). 179 Chapter I: On the Creation and Integration of the National Council for Children and Adolescents (CONANI) and the functioning of its administrative bodies………………………………………………….. 179 Section I: On the creation and integration of the National Council for Children and Adolescents (CONANI) 179 Section II: On the board of directors of the National Council for Children and Adolescents (CONANI) 180 Section III: On the Presidency of the National Council for Children and Adolescents (CONANI) 186 Section IV:

From the National Office 187

Section V:

From the Municipal Directories 189

Section VI:

From the Municipal Offices 192

Section VII: On the Financing of the National Council

for Children and Adolescents (CONANI) 194

Chapter II: On Citizen Participation and Non-Governmental Organizations 195 Section I:

From Citizen Participation 195

Section II: On the Programs of Non-Governmental Organizations 196 Title II: On the Measures for the Protection and Restitution of Rights, the Process and the Execution…………………………………………………….. 200 Chapter I: General Provisions………………………………………………………………. 200 Chapter II: On the Local Boards for the Protection and Restitution of Rights………………………………………………………………………………………. 203 Chapter III: On the Process of Protection and Restitution of Rights……………………………………………………………………………………………. 205 Section I:

From General Process 205

Section II: On the special process for placement in

foster family 207

Section III:

From the implementation of measures 210

Final Provisions………………………………………………………………………….. 212

CODE FOR THE SYSTEM OF PROTECTION AND FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS OF CHILDREN AND ADOLESCENTS BOOK ONE: DEFINITIONS, SYSTEM OF PROTECTION AND FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS OF CHILDREN AND ADOLESCENTS TITLE I: GENERAL PRINCIPLES PRINCIPLE I OBJECT OF THE CODE. The purpose of this Code is to guarantee to all children and adolescents within the national territory the full and effective exercise and enjoyment of their fundamental rights. For these purposes, this Code defines and establishes the comprehensive protection of these rights by regulating the role and relationship of the State, society, families and individuals with the subjects from their birth until they reach 18 years of age. PRINCIPLE II DEFINITION OF CHILD AND ADOLESCENT. A child is considered to be any person from birth up to and including twelve years of age; and an adolescent is any person from thirteen years of age until reaching the age of majority. PRINCIPLE III PRESUMPTION OF MINORITY. If there are doubts as to whether a person is a child or adolescent, they will be presumed to be a child or adolescent, until proven otherwise, in accordance with the terms established by this Code. PRINCIPLE IV PRINCIPLE OF EQUALITY AND NON-DISCRIMINATION. The provisions of this Code apply equally to all children and adolescents, without any discrimination based on race, color, sex, age, language, thought, conscience, religion, beliefs, culture, political or other opinion, economic status, social, ethnic or national origin, disability, illness, birth, being at risk or any other condition of the child or adolescent, their parents, representatives or guardians or their relatives. PRINCIPLE V BEST INTERESTS OF THE CHILD AND ADOLESCENT. The principle of the best interests of the child or adolescent must always be taken into account in the interpretation and application of this Code and is mandatory in all decisions concerning them. It seeks to contribute to their integral development and ensure the full and effective enjoyment of their fundamental rights. To determine the best interests of the child or adolescent in a specific situation, the following must be considered: The opinion of the child or adolescent; The need for a balance between the rights and guarantees of the child or adolescent and the demands of the common good; The specific condition of children and adolescents as developing persons; The indivisibility of human rights and, therefore, the need for a balance between the different groups of rights of children and adolescents and the principles on which they are based, in accordance with the International Convention on the Rights of the Child; The need to prioritize the rights of the child or adolescent over the rights of adults. PRINCIPLE VI PRINCIPLE OF ABSOLUTE PRIORITY. The State and society must ensure, with absolute priority, all the fundamental rights of children and adolescents. Absolute priority is imperative for all and includes: Primacy in the formulation of public policies; Primacy in receiving special protection in any circumstance; Preference in the attention of public and private services; Prevalence of their rights in a situation of conflict with other legitimately protected rights and interests. PRINCIPLE VII GENERAL OBLIGATIONS OF THE STATE. The State, as representative of the whole of society, has the undeniable obligation to take all administrative, legislative, judicial and any other measures that are necessary and appropriate to ensure that all children and adolescents fully and effectively enjoy their rights, and may not allege budgetary limitations to fail to comply with the established obligations. In this regard, the State must ensure policies, programs and appropriate assistance so that the family can adequately assume its responsibilities and will guarantee children and adolescents access to programs and services for the enjoyment of all the rights enshrined in this Code. PRINCIPLE VIII GENERAL OBLIGATIONS OF THE FAMILY. The family is primarily responsible for ensuring that children and adolescents can fully and effectively exercise and enjoy their fundamental rights. The father and the mother have common and equal responsibilities and obligations with regard to the care, development, education and comprehensive protection of their sons and daughters. PRINCIPLE IX PARTICIPATION OF SOCIETY. Society and its organizations must and have the right to actively participate in achieving the full and effective exercise of the rights of all children and adolescents. The State must create ways for the direct and active participation of governmental and non-governmental institutions in the definition, implementation and control of protection policies aimed at children and adolescents. PRINCIPLE X PRINCIPLE OF FREE ACTIONS. Applications, petitions, demands and other actions relating to the matters referred to in this Code, and the certified copies issued thereof, shall be made on plain paper and without any kind of tax. Officials and employees of the public administration, including judicial and municipal officials who intervene in any way in such matters, will handle them with the utmost priority and may not charge any additional remuneration or right beyond that received from the State. TITLE II: GUARANTEES AND FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS CHAPTER I: GENERAL PROVISIONS Art. 1.- FULL SUBJECT OF LAW. All children and adolescents are subjects of rights. Consequently, they enjoy all the fundamental rights enshrined in favor of persons, especially those that correspond to them in their condition as a developing person, and those enshrined in this Code, the Constitution of the Republic, the Convention on the Rights of the Child and other international instruments. Paragraph.- These rights are of public order, non-negotiable, non-waivable, interdependent and indivisible among themselves. Art. 2.- DUTIES OF CHILDREN AND ADOLESCENTS. The State, through its institutions, the media, the family, and the community in general, will promote the development of values ​​and principles so that children and adolescents can fulfill the following duties: Honor the Nation through respect for its symbols, heroes, and heroines; Value and respect the family as the core of society, honoring and obeying their parents or guardians, who, in turn, must accept and respect their rights and not violate the legal order; Act in accordance with the principles of democratic coexistence, social and human solidarity; Respect freedom and diversity of conscience, thought, religion, and culture; Fulfill their school, family, and community responsibilities; Contribute to the preservation of the environment through the conservation of the spaces in the community where they live; Comply with and respect the laws, as well as any other duty established therein. CHAPTER II: FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS Art. 3.- RIGHT TO LIFE. All children and adolescents have the right to life. The State must guarantee this right through public policies aimed at ensuring survival, health, and integral development. Art. 4.- RIGHT TO A NAME AND NATIONALITY. All children and adolescents have the right to a name and a nationality. Therefore, they must be identified and registered immediately after their birth. To that effect, the doctor or health personnel attending the birth are obliged, within a period of no more than twelve (12) hours after it occurs, to deliver a certificate of the same to the parents or those responsible, previously identified, sending another certificate to the authorities responsible for its official registration. Paragraph I.- The State shall ensure the application of these rights in accordance with national legislation and the obligations assumed under the international instruments it has ratified, guaranteeing newborns, in a mandatory and timely manner, their identification and the establishment of the filial link with the father and mother. Paragraph II.- Public and private health institutions, centers and services must keep records of births that occur in them, through individual medical records, which will include, in addition to the relevant medical data, the identification of the newborn, through the registration of their fingerprint and footprint, name and age of the mother, and the date and time of delivery, without prejudice to other methods of identification that may be used. Paragraph III.- In cases of children whose birth did not occur in a public or private center, and in the face of the refusal of the authorities in charge of making the registration in the Civil Registry, the mother, the father or the person in charge, by himself or through special representation, or through the National Council for Children and Adolescents (CONANI), may empower the Court of Children and Adolescents so that, having proven the birth, it authorizes its registration in the Civil Registry. Art. 5.- RIGHT TO BE REGISTERED IN THE CIVIL REGISTRY. All children and adolescents have the right to be registered in the Civil Registry immediately after their birth, in accordance with the law. Paragraph I.- The father, mother or representatives of a child or adolescent must register them in the corresponding Civil Registry Office. Paragraph II.- The State must guarantee free, simple and fast procedures for the timely registration of children and adolescents in the Civil Registry. To that end, it will duly provide the aforementioned Registry with the necessary resources for said registration. It must also adopt specific measures to facilitate the registration of those children and adolescents who have not been registered in a timely manner. Paragraph III.- The State will expand the delegations of the Civil Registry Offices to all maternal and child hospitals, at the national level, to guarantee the timely declaration of births of all boys and girls. Art. 6.- REGISTRATION WITH JUDICIAL AUTHORIZATION. The National Council for Children and Adolescents will manage the registration of the birth and the issuance of the corresponding certificate to the child or adolescent, in those cases in which their parents or guardians are unable to do so, before the corresponding Civil Official, with the prior authorization of the Court of Children or Adolescents. Art. 7.- FREE REGISTRATION IN THE CIVIL REGISTRY. Registration in the Civil Registry and the issuance of the birth certificate of children or adolescents is free of taxes, fines and fees and will enjoy absolute priority in processing. Art. 8.- RIGHT TO MAINTAIN PERSONAL RELATIONSHIPS AND DIRECT CONTACT WITH THE FATHER AND MOTHER. All children and adolescents have the right, on a regular and permanent basis, to maintain personal relationships and direct contact with their father and mother, even when there is a separation between them, unless this is contrary to their best interests, which must be verified and authorized by the competent judicial authority. Art. 9.- RELATIONSHIPS WITH GRANDPARENTS. The father and mother, the guardian or person in charge, cannot, except for serious reasons, oppose the personal relationships of the child or adolescent with their grandparents. In the absence of an agreement between the parties, the modalities of these relationships will be regulated by the civil chamber of the corresponding Children's and Adolescents' Court. Paragraph.- Considering exceptional situations, the civil chamber of the Children's and Adolescents' Court may grant a right of communication or visitation to other persons, relatives or not. Art. 10.- RIGHT TO CULTURE, SPORT, FREE TIME AND RECREATION. It is the obligation of the State, especially the institutions that make up the National Council for Children and Adolescents (CONANI), to guarantee all children and adolescents the right to: Enjoy all cultural expressions that contribute to the integral development of their person; Adequate spaces to make appropriate use of free time; Play and participate in recreational and sports activities; Education in artistic areas; Activities that promote the development of talent and creativity; Enjoy a culture of peace. Paragraph.- For these purposes, in addition to the obligations of other State entities, all municipalities are responsible for ensuring the existence of adequate public, sports and recreational spaces so that children and adolescents can enjoy this right. Art. 11.- RIGHT TO A HEALTHY ENVIRONMENT. All children and adolescents have the right to a healthy environment and to the preservation and enjoyment of the landscape. The family, the community, and the State must guarantee that the environment in which the child and adolescent develops is free of pollution and prevents it from endangering their health. For these purposes: The family will provide a hygienic and habitable home and educate their sons and daughters in habits that promote the protection of the environment; The State will promote the environmental education of children and adolescents and create the necessary mechanisms to protect the environment in which they live. Art. 12.- RIGHT TO PERSONAL INTEGRITY. All children and adolescents have the right to personal integrity. This right includes respect for dignity, the inviolability of physical, mental, moral and sexual integrity, including the preservation of one's image, identity, autonomy of values, ideas, beliefs, personal space and belongings. Paragraph.- It is the responsibility of the family, the State and society to protect them against any form of exploitation, mistreatment, torture, abuse or neglect that affects their personal integrity. Art. 13.- RIGHT TO RESTITUTION OF RIGHTS. The Dominican State has the responsibility to protect all children and adolescents against all forms of abuse, mistreatment and exploitation, regardless of the means used, including the use of the internet or any electronic means. Paragraph.- In these cases, the rights violated or threatened will be restored through the execution of protection measures provided for in this Code. The family and society as a whole must participate and demand this right. Art. 14.- RIGHT TO REPORT ABUSE AGAINST HIM. Professionals and officials in the areas of health, pedagogy, psychology, social work and law enforcement agents, directors and officials, both public and private, and any other person who in the performance or not of their functions has knowledge or suspicion of a situation of abuse or violation of the rights of children and adolescents, are obliged to report it to the competent authorities, being exempt from criminal and civil liability, with respect to the information they provide. Paragraph.- Failure to comply with this obligation carries a criminal penalty of one (1) to three (3) officially established minimum wages. The criminal chamber of the Children's and Adolescents' Court is competent to hear this offense. Art. 15.- RIGHT TO FREEDOM. All children and adolescents have the right to personal freedom, freedom of conscience, thought, religion, association and other rights and freedoms established in the Constitution, the International Convention on the Rights of the Child and this Code. Art. 16.- RIGHT TO EXPRESS AN OPINION AND BE HEARD. All children and adolescents have the right to freely express their opinion, to be heard and taken into account, according to their progressive stage of development. Paragraph I.- This right extends to all areas in which children and adolescents develop: state, family, community, social, school, scientific, cultural, sports and recreational. Paragraph II.- All children and adolescents are guaranteed the personal and direct exercise of this right, especially in any administrative or judicial procedure that leads to a decision that is linked to the guarantee of their rights and interests. Art. 17.- RIGHT TO PARTICIPATE. All children and adolescents have the right to participate freely, actively and fully in family, community, social, school, scientific, cultural, sports and recreational life, as well as the progressive incorporation into active citizenship. The State, the family, and society must create and promote opportunities for the participation of all children and adolescents and their associations. Art. 18.- RIGHT TO PRIVACY. All children and adolescents have the right to honor, reputation and self-image, to private life and personal and family life. These rights cannot be subject to arbitrary or illegal interference by the State, natural persons or legal entities. Art. 19.- RIGHT TO FUN. All children and adolescents will have access to public entertainment and shows that are appropriate or classified as suitable for their age. Paragraph I.- Children under ten (10) years of age may only enter or remain in the places of presentation or exhibition when accompanied by their parents or guardians. Paragraph II.- Radio or television stations will broadcast, during classified hours for children and adolescents, programs with an educational, artistic, cultural, informative and formative purpose in values ​​and prevention of violence. Paragraph III.- Every program will be presented or announced with the classification before, during and at the end of it. Paragraph IV.- Those responsible for public shows and entertainment will visibly place, at the entrance of the place, detailed information about the nature of the show and its classification in terms of the ages from which access will be allowed. Art. 20.- CONTENT IDENTIFICATION. All materials: magazines, publications, videos, illustrations, photographs, readings, chronicles, must have a wrapper that states their contents. Art. 21.- REGULATION OF ADVERTISING AND SALES. Alcoholic beverages, tobacco, firearms and ammunition, and their illustrations, photographs and propaganda will be displayed to the public, observing the standards of utmost respect for the ethical and social values ​​of human beings and families. This type of merchandise and advertising is prohibited in public and private places intended for children and adolescents. Art. 22.- SALE PROHIBITION. The sale to children and adolescents of the following is prohibited: Weapons, ammunition and explosives; Alcoholic beverages and tobacco; Fireworks; Lottery tickets and their equivalents; Pornographic material of any nature; Any other substances and products whose components may cause them harm or physical or mental dependence. Art. 23.- ENTRY PROHIBITION. Children and adolescents are absolutely prohibited from entering commercial establishments where alcoholic beverages are consumed, gambling houses and betting shops. The owners of these establishments will be required to place in a visible place at the entrance of the premises the warning prohibiting the admission of children and adolescents. Art. 24.- PROHIBITION OF LODGING AND VISITING. Visits and lodging of children and adolescents in hotels, motels or any establishment of this type are prohibited, unless they are accompanied by their parents or guardians. Paragraph.- Violation of the prohibitions indicated in this article will be sanctioned in the manner provided in article 414 of this Code. Art. 25.- PROHIBITION OF COMMERCIALIZATION, PROSTITUTION AND PORNOGRAPHY. The commercialization, prostitution and use of children and adolescents in pornography is prohibited. Paragraph I.- The commercialization of children and adolescents is understood as any act or transaction by virtue of which a child or adolescent is transferred by one person or group of persons to another, in exchange for remuneration or any other compensation. For these purposes, it will be punishable to offer, deliver or accept by any means a child or adolescent, for the purpose of sexual exploitation, sale and/or use of their organs, forced labor or any other purpose that denigrates the person of the child or adolescent. Paragraph II.- Prostitution of children and adolescents is understood as the use of any of these in sexual activities in exchange for remuneration or any other compensation. Paragraph III.- The use of children and adolescents in pornography is understood to mean any representation, by any means, of children and adolescents engaged in explicit sexual activities, real or simulated, or any representation of the genital parts of children and adolescents for primarily sexual purposes. Art. 26.- RIGHT TO THE PROTECTION OF IMAGE. It is prohibited to dispose of or disclose, through any means, the image and data of children and adolescents in a way that may affect their physical, moral, psychological and intellectual development, their honor and reputation, or that constitutes arbitrary or illegal interference in their private life and family intimacy or that may stigmatize their conduct or behavior. Paragraph.- Violation of the prohibitions indicated in the previous articles will be sanctioned in the manner provided by article 411 of this Code. Art. 27.- RIGHT TO INFORMATION. All children and adolescents have the right to receive, seek and use all types of information that are appropriate to their development and to freely select the medium and information to receive without any limits other than those established in this Code. Paragraph.- For the exercise of this right, the State will establish control mechanisms through the National Commission of Public Shows and Radio Broadcasting, the State Secretariat of Culture, the State Secretariats of Education and Youth, aimed at ensuring that the information directed to this population segment corresponds to the principles and guarantees of this Code and the International Convention on the Rights of the Child. CHAPTER III: RIGHT TO HEALTH Art. 28.- RIGHT TO HEALTH AND HEALTH SERVICES. All children and adolescents have the right, from birth, to enjoy the highest possible level of physical and mental health. Paragraph I.- The State, through the implementation of effective public policies, will guarantee to all children and adolescents, from birth until the age of eighteen, universal and equal access to plans, programs and services for prevention, promotion, protection, treatment and rehabilitation of health. It must also ensure they have access to regular, free, and high-quality medical and dental services. Paragraph II.- Under no circumstances may health care be denied to children and adolescents, alleging reasons such as the absence of parents, representatives or guardians, the lack of identity documents or economic resources and any other cause that violates their rights. Art. 29.- RIGHT TO INFORMATION ON HEALTH MATTERS. All children and adolescents have the right to be informed and educated about the basic principles of prevention in matters of health, nutrition, early stimulation, physical development, sexual and reproductive health, hygiene, environmental sanitation and accidents. Likewise, both they and their immediate family members have the right to be informed, truthfully and promptly, about their state of health, according to their stage and level of development. Paragraph.- The State, with the active participation of society, will guarantee information and education programs on these matters, aimed at children and adolescents and their families. Art. 30.- PROTECTION OF MATERNITY. The State will protect motherhood. To that end, it will guarantee their care through free services and programs of the highest quality during pregnancy, childbirth and the post-natal phase, whether these are local, area or regional, in accordance with the structure and organization of the public health and social security systems. Paragraph I.- The woman in labor will be attended, if possible, by the same health professional who attended her during the pregnancy. Paragraph II.- The State will ensure care programs specifically aimed at guiding and protecting the mother-child bond of all pregnant girls and adolescents or mothers. Paragraph III.- The State will strengthen care programs aimed at women and men of reproductive age, so that they become aware of family planning and maternal and paternal responsibility through education and dissemination campaigns. Art. 31.- RIGHT TO IMMUNIZATION. All children and adolescents have the right to immunization against preventable diseases. The State, through the Ministry of Public Health and Social Assistance, the Dominican Social Security System or other related organizations, has the obligation to supply and apply vaccines to all children and adolescents. Paragraph.- It is the obligation of parents and guardians to vaccinate their sons and daughters in the cases recommended by the competent health authorities. Art. 32.- OBLIGATION OF EDUCATIONAL AUTHORITIES IN HEALTH MATTERS. The directors, legal representatives, or those in charge of educational centers and other educational institutions, public or private, have the obligation to: Ensure that parents and guardians comply with the obligation contemplated in the previous article to immunize children and adolescents; Inform parents and guardians that the child or adolescent requires medical, dental, psychological, or any other care that guarantees their optimal growth and development; Coordinate and implement the programs on preventive, sexual, and reproductive health formulated by the Dominican Social Security System and the competent State Secretariats. Art. 33.- RIGHT TO PROTECTION AGAINST ALCOHOLIC, NARCOTICS AND PSYCHOTROPIC SUBSTANCES. The State, with the active participation of society, must guarantee policies and programs for the prevention of the illicit use of alcoholic, narcotic and psychotropic substances. It must also ensure permanent programs of special care for the recovery of children and adolescents dependent on and consuming these substances. CHAPTER IV: RIGHT TO LABOR PROTECTION OF CHILDREN AND ADOLESCENTS Art. 34.- RIGHT TO PROTECTION AGAINST LABOR EXPLOITATION. Children and adolescents have the right to protection against economic exploitation. The State and society must develop and implement policies, plans, programs and protection measures aimed at eradicating child labor, especially those defined as the worst forms of child labor. The family must contribute to achieving this goal. Paragraph.- The protection against the labor exploitation of children and adolescents is the responsibility of the State, exercised through the State Secretariat of Labor, in coordination with the National Council for Children and Adolescents (CONANI), who are protected by the provisions of the Labor Code of the Dominican Republic, ILO Convention 138 concerning the Establishment of the Minimum Age for Admission to Employment and Convention No. 182 concerning the Eradication of the Worst Forms of Child Labor and other international instruments ratified by the country, as well as the regulations and recommendations on child labor issued by the National Steering Committee for the Fight against Child Labor. Art. 35.- GUIDELINES FOR LABOR PROTECTION POLICY. The State Secretariat for Labor will be responsible for setting policies for the employment of adolescents. These policies should: Create alternative support mechanisms for the families of working adolescents; Prevent the early entry of adolescents into the workforce; Encourage vocational training that ensures adolescents are prepared to enter the labor market. Art. 36.- REGULATION OF EMPLOYMENT CONTRACTS. The State Secretariat of Labor and the Dominican Social Security System must ensure the protection and compliance of the labor rights and social security of adolescents. To achieve their goals, they must regulate everything related to their hiring, especially the type of work allowed and the necessary working conditions. This regulation must be issued in coordination and consultation with labor and business associations, governmental and non-governmental institutions responsible for protecting the rights of working adolescents, and with the groups they form to defend their rights. Art. 37.- FAMILY AND INFORMAL WORK. Adolescents who are self-employed in the informal sector, working from home or in family work will also be protected by this Code. For the purposes of this article, family work shall be understood as that performed by them, as an indispensable contribution to the functioning of the family business. Art. 38.- RIGHT TO TRAINING. Working adolescents will have the right to training appropriate to their condition as a developing person. Art. 39.- OF THE APPRENTICES. Apprenticeship contracts will include a clause on how teenagers will receive knowledge of the trade, art, or form of work. These contracts will not last more than two years in the case of artisanal work, and six months in the case of industrial work or other types of work. Paragraph.- Employers will guarantee all the rights of the adolescent worker, especially those related to education, health and rest. In no case shall the remuneration of the adolescent apprentice be less than the official minimum wage. Art. 40.- WORK PROHIBITION. Employment is prohibited for people under the age of fourteen. The person who by any means verifies the violation of this prohibition shall inform the State Secretariat of Labor and the National Council for Children and Adolescents (CONANI), so that appropriate measures may be taken to ensure that the minor ceases his or her work activities and rejoins the educational system, if he or she is outside the system. Art. 41.- DOMESTIC WORK. Teenagers who work in domestic service will have the same rights and guarantees as working teenagers in general. Art. 42.- INSPECTION OF ADOLESCENT WORK. The State Secretariat for Labor will inspect the work of adolescents, through officials from the general labor inspection. It will periodically visit workplaces to determine if they employ minors and if they comply with the rules for their protection. They will especially ensure that: The work performed is not prohibited or restricted for adolescents, according to this Code, the Labor Code and the regulations; The work does not disrupt regular attendance at the educational center; The working conditions do not harm or risk the physical and mental health of the adolescent and their rights are respected. Art. 43.- REGISTRATION REQUIREMENTS. The State Secretariat for Labor will keep a record, by province, of working adolescents, and will have to send this information periodically to the National Council for Children and Adolescents (CONANI). The regulations will establish how to keep this record and the data that must be recorded. Art. 44.- SANCTIONS. Violations, whether by action or omission, of the provisions contained in this chapter, committed by the employer, will constitute a very serious offense and will be sanctioned in accordance with Articles 720 et seq. of the Labor Code. Paragraph I.- When an employer who employs adolescents refuses to provide reports, documents, or workplace inspections required by the competent authorities, he or she will be held liable and will be sanctioned in accordance with the provisions of this article. Paragraph II.- The competent court to impose these sanctions is the labor jurisdiction. If necessary, the teenager's statement may be heard, always in a council chamber. CHAPTER V: ON THE RIGHT TO EDUCATION Art. 45.- RIGHT TO EDUCATION. All children and adolescents have the right to a comprehensive education of the highest quality, oriented towards the development of their potential and capacities that contribute to their personal, family and societal development. They must also be prepared to fully exercise their civic rights, respect human rights, and develop their own national and cultural values, within a framework of peace, solidarity, tolerance, and respect. Paragraph I.- Basic education is compulsory and free. Both parents and the State are responsible for ensuring that all children complete their basic primary education. Paragraph II.- Under no circumstances may education be denied to children and adolescents alleging reasons such as: the absence of parents, representatives or guardians, the lack of identity documents or economic resources or any other cause that violates their rights. Art. 46.- GUARANTEES OF THE RIGHT TO EDUCATION. For the exercise of the right to education of children and adolescents, the State, and in particular the State Secretariat of Education, must guarantee: Access to early childhood education from the age of three; Compulsory and free basic education; The adoption of measures to promote regular school attendance and reduce dropout rates; Secondary education, including vocational education for all adolescents; Information and guidance on professional and vocational training for all children and adolescents. Art. 47.- RESPONSIBILITIES OF THE DIRECTOR OF AN EDUCATIONAL CENTER. The director of a school, college, educational center or any educational entity, after two absences or dropouts from the educational center of a child or adolescent, has the obligation to address the parents or guardians to establish the causes of the absences or dropouts, and in case the causes are not satisfactory, said director will require the parent or guardian to send the child or adolescent back to the educational center. All of the above will be documented in writing. If the father, mother or guardian does not comply with this requirement, the director will empower the National Council for Children and Adolescents (CONANI) so that the appropriate measures may be taken. Paragraph I.- The National Council for Children and Adolescents (CONANI) is responsible for linking, by all possible means, children and adolescents who have been absent or have dropped out of the educational center. Paragraph II.- All persons have the duty to communicate to the National Council for Children and Adolescents (CONANI), by any means, the presence of children or adolescents who are not linked to school, providing data that allows them to be located for their insertion into a public or private school. Paragraph III.- If the director of a school, college or educational center does not comply with the obligations established in the previous article, he will be sanctioned with a fine of one to three minimum wages, by the criminal chamber of the Court of Children, Girls and Adolescents, without prejudice to the disciplinary sanctions that will be imposed on him by the State Secretariat of Education, which may range from verbal or written reprimand, suspension without pay and dismissal from his position. Paragraph IV.- The State Secretariat of Education may apply the disciplinary sanction of dismissal of the director of the educational center, only after the competent court has sanctioned him twice, for the reasons indicated in this article. Art. 48.- SCHOOL DISCIPLINE. School discipline must be administered in accordance with the rights, guarantees and duties of children and adolescents established in this Code. Consequently, the State Secretariat of Education will clearly establish and distribute each year the content of the official disciplinary regulations to be applied in each school, without prejudice to the specific rules that, being in accordance with the aforementioned regulations and the principles established in this Code, may be established by private educational centers.

Regarding the official disciplinary regulations of schools, educational institutions, or centers, the following measures will be taken into account: These regulations will establish the acts that are subject to sanction, the applicable sanctions, and the procedure for imposing them, both in relation to the behavior of students, educators, and administrative staff of each educational center; All children and adolescents must have access to and be informed in a timely manner, at the beginning of each school year, through written communication addressed to them and their parents, guardians, or caregivers, of the corresponding disciplinary regulations; Before the imposition of any sanction, all children and adolescents must be guaranteed the exercise of their rights to express their opinion and to defend themselves; and after it has been imposed, they must be guaranteed the possibility of appealing it before a higher and impartial authority; Corporal and economic sanctions, as well as collective sanctions, are prohibited, as is any type of correction that may be considered a threat or violation of the rights of students; Sanctions, withdrawal, expulsion, or any discriminatory treatment on the grounds of pregnancy of a girl or adolescent are prohibited; The failure of parents or guardians to pay fees or for specific educational services in public or private educational centers may not be grounds for discriminating against or sanctioning children or adolescents in any way; If a private educational center finds it necessary to suspend the provision of educational services to a child or adolescent due to non-payment by their parents, it may only do so at the end of the corresponding school period, guaranteeing that the education of the subjects is not interrupted or that they are not subjected to any form of discrimination for this reason. Once the school year has ended, the center may suspend services for the following year, after informing the corresponding school district, to guarantee the student's mandatory enrollment in a public educational center, without prejudice to any additional measures that may be initiated in relation to the conduct of the parents or guardians; The withdrawal or expulsion of the child or adolescent from the educational center will only be imposed for the reasons expressly established in the disciplinary regulations, following the applicable administrative procedure and ensuring an eminently educational process, aimed at fostering civic responsibility, without prejudice to the rights of the individual and the provisions of this Code. Paragraph I.- In the event of a violation of this article in an educational center, the interested party may go to the regional office of the corresponding State Secretariat of Education, in order to resolve the difficulty or discrepancy. Paragraph II.- The civil chamber of the Children's and Adolescents' Court is competent to hear any claim arising from the violation of this article, which may only be attempted after the procedure indicated in paragraph I has concluded. Art. 49.- RIGHT TO BE RESPECTED BY THEIR EDUCATORS. All children and adolescents have the right to be treated with respect and dignity by their educators. Art. 50.- INSTANCE FOR FILING COMPLAINTS. The State Secretariat of Education, through the Guidance and Psychology and School Protection departments, will establish in the regional offices, school districts and educational centers, the administrative mechanisms that allow children and adolescents or their parents, representatives or guardians to file complaints for threats or violations of the rights of students, in order to carry out the respective investigations and corresponding procedures that allow the effective protection of rights, in coordination with the different instances that are part of the Child and Adolescent Protection System. For these purposes, the State Secretariat for Education will define a specific policy and procedure which it will make public. TITLE III: NATIONAL SYSTEM FOR THE PROTECTION OF THE RIGHTS OF CHILDREN AND ADOLESCENTS CHAPTER I: GENERAL PROVISIONS Art. 51.- DEFINITION. The National System for the Protection of the Rights of Children and Adolescents is the set of institutions, organizations and entities, both governmental and non-governmental, that formulate, coordinate, integrate, supervise, execute and evaluate public policies, programs and actions at the national, regional and municipal level for the comprehensive protection of the rights of children and adolescents. Art. 52.- PURPOSE. The National System for the Protection of the Rights of Children and Adolescents aims to guarantee the rights of children and adolescents and promote their integral development through the coordination of intersectoral and interinstitutional policies and actions. Art. 53.- MEMBERS OF THE NATIONAL SYSTEM FOR THE PROTECTION OF THE RIGHTS OF CHILDREN AND ADOLESCENTS. The National System for the Protection of the Rights of Children and Adolescents will be comprised of: Bodies for defining, planning, controlling, and evaluating policies: Boards of Directors of the National and Municipal Councils; Bodies for implementing policies: National and Municipal Offices and public and private care entities; Bodies for the protection, defense, and enforcement of rights: Local boards for the protection and restitution of rights; Courts for Children and Adolescents, Judges of Execution, Courts of Appeals, Supreme Court of Justice; Technical Defense Office for Children and Adolescents; Public Prosecutor's Office for Children and Adolescents. CHAPTER II: ON POLICIES AND PROGRAMS Art. 54.- DEFINITION OF PUBLIC POLICIES. Public policies aimed at protecting the rights of children and adolescents are the set of rules, actions, provisions, procedures, resolutions, agreements, guidelines and directives of a public nature issued by the competent bodies, in order to guide the management that ensures and guarantees the rights enshrined in this Code and international instruments. Paragraph.- The National System is responsible for the formulation, execution and control of public policies in accordance with this Code. Public policies adopted in accordance with this Code are binding on the National System for the Protection of the Rights of Children and Adolescents, within their respective areas of competence. Art. 55.- PROGRAM DEFINITION. A program is a set of actions planned, coordinated and executed by institutions, agencies or governmental and non-governmental entities for educational purposes, protection, care, training, social integration, strengthening of socio-family relationships and other actions, aimed at the comprehensive protection, promotion and defense of the rights of children and adolescents. Paragraph.- The care programs will include, among others, the following: Social intervention programs that guarantee adequate living conditions for children and adolescents and promote their participation and that of their families; Programs that ensure timely attention when they face situations that violate and/or infringe upon their rights; Rehabilitation programs that allow for physical and mental recovery; Rehabilitation and socio-family reintegration programs for adolescents in conflict with the criminal law; School linkage programs for children and adolescents to guarantee their right to education; Other programs in accordance with public policies and the needs identified for the protection of the rights of children and adolescents. CHAPTER III: ON THE FINANCING OF THE NATIONAL SYSTEM FOR THE PROTECTION OF THE RIGHTS OF CHILDREN AND ADOLESCENTS Art. 56.- SOURCES. For the purposes of this Code, the following are considered as sources of financing: the financial resources provided by the State through the national budget to the various decentralized and/or autonomous government institutions, related to the general social investment of the State that directly and indirectly reach children and adolescents, as well as those allocated to the Judiciary and the Attorney General's Office for the jurisdiction of children and adolescents. Resources from municipalities, international cooperation, the private sector, or individuals and legal entities interested in collaborating with the comprehensive development of children and adolescents are also considered as sources, through the financing of the National Protection System, and those allocated in the Budget for the National Council for Children and Adolescents (CONANI), as provided in Book Four of this Code. Art. 57.- PRIVATE RESOURCES. Private resources are considered to be those originating from the national or international non-governmental sector, from individuals or legal entities not committed to public funds.

BOOK TWO: FAMILY LAW TITLE I: GENERAL PROVISIONS Art. 58.- FAMILY NAME. The family is understood to be the group made up of: The father and mother, the biological, adopted or foster children, the fruits of a marriage or a consensual union; The father or mother and their sons and daughters; Spouses without children; Descendants, ascendants up to the fourth degree of consanguinity (parents, brothers and sisters, grandparents, uncles, cousins). Art. 59.- RIGHT TO BE RAISED IN A FAMILY. All children and adolescents have the right to live, be raised and develop within their family of origin. Exceptionally, in cases where this is impossible or contrary to their best interests, they shall have the right to live, be raised and develop in a substitute family, in accordance with this Code. Under no circumstances can the lack of economic resources be considered a reason to separate children and adolescents from their family of origin. Paragraph I.- The separation of a child or adolescent from their family may only be the result of a judicial decision and only in the cases provided for by this Code, provided that it is proven that the family home does not guarantee an environment suitable to their best interests, which allows the development of the child or adolescent. Paragraph II.- In any case, the family must offer an environment of affection and security, which allows the integral development of children and adolescents. Art. 60.- STATE RESPONSIBILITY. The State, with the active participation of society, must guarantee special protection programs and measures for children and adolescents deprived of their biological or adoptive family, temporarily or permanently. Art. 61.- EQUALITY OF RIGHTS. All sons and daughters, whether born from a consensual relationship, a marriage or adopted, shall enjoy equal rights and qualities, including those relating to the order of succession. Paragraph.- The use of discriminatory terms relating to a person's parentage will not be permitted. TITLE II: ON FILIATION Art. 62.- PROOF OF PATERNAL AND MATERNAL FILIATION. Children born within marriage are considered to be the children of the husband. The parentage of children is proven by the birth certificate issued by the Civil Registry Officer. In the absence of this, possession of status is sufficient, as established in common law. Maternal parentage is proven by the simple fact of birth. In any case, scientific evidence may be used to confirm or deny maternal or paternal parentage. Art. 63.- MODALITIES OF RECOGNITION. Children conceived outside of marriage may be recognized by their father individually, at the time of birth or subsequently, either by declaring it before the Civil Registry Official, by will or by authentic act, regardless of the legal status of the relationship from which it originates. Paragraph I.- The recognition may precede the birth of the son or daughter, taking effect only if the child is born alive, or after the death of the son or daughter if they leave descendants. Paragraph II.- When the recognition has not been made before the Civil Registry Officer, the presentation of the document, by the interested person, where said recognition is recorded, is sufficient for the same to issue the corresponding birth certificate. Paragraph III.- The mother may proceed to judicially demand the recognition of a son or daughter from birth until the age of majority. In the absence or incapacity of the mother, the person in charge or guardian may initiate the action for recognition. Sons and daughters may claim parentage at any time after reaching the age of majority. Art. 64.- APPLICABLE LAW. Parentage will be governed by the personal law of the mother on the day of the birth of the son or daughter. If the mother is unknown, the personal law of the son or daughter applies. Paragraph.- The possession of status will produce all the consequences that derive from Dominican law, even if the other elements of filiation depend on a foreign law, on the condition that the son or daughter born within the marriage or of a de facto union, and the father and mother have their habitual residence in the Dominican Republic, common or separate. Art. 65.- COMPETITION. Actions relating to parentage disputes and actions for recognition or denial of parentage will be under the jurisdiction of the civil chamber of the Court for Children and Adolescents, of the domicile of the child or adolescent. Art. 66.- APPLICABLE LAW. The voluntary acknowledgment of paternity or maternity will be valid if it has been made by the personal law of its author or by the personal law of the son or daughter. TITLE III: ON THE AUTHORITY OF THE FATHER AND THE MOTHER Art. 67.- CONCEPT AND OWNERSHIP OF PARENTAL AUTHORITY. Parental authority is the set of duties and rights that belong equally to the father and the mother, in relation to the sons and daughters who have not reached the age of majority. Art. 68.- DUTIES OF THE FATHER AND MOTHER. In all circumstances, the father and mother shall be obliged to: Declare or recognize their sons and daughters at the Civil Registry Office immediately after their birth; Provide sustenance, protection, education, and supervision; Ensure the education of children and adolescents; consequently, they must enroll them in a timely manner in a school, institution, or educational institute, in accordance with the law, and require their regular attendance at classes and actively participate in their educational process; Guarantee the health of children and adolescents; Guide children and adolescents in the progressive exercise of their rights and in the fulfillment of their duties, in a way that contributes to their integral development and their incorporation into society; Administer their assets, if they have any. Art. 69.- PARENTAL RESPONSIBILITY. The father and mother, while exercising parental authority, will be presumed jointly responsible for the damages caused by their minor children who live with them. For this purpose, it will suffice that the harmful act of the children constitutes the direct cause of the harm suffered by the victim, regardless of any moral assessment of the behavior of the children or the parents. The presumption of liability previously established may only be rebutted by proof of fortuitous event or force majeure. Paragraph I.- When parental authority is exercised by only one of the parents, only he will be responsible for the damages caused by his minor children under the stated conditions. Paragraph II.- The responsibility provided for in this article shall also apply to guardians or natural persons who exercise parental authority or legal or de facto guardianship over minors. Paragraph III.- The cases of liability provided for in this article shall be within the jurisdiction of the common law courts. Art. 70.- GUARANTEE OF RIGHTS AND QUALITY OF LIFE. Parents, guardians or those responsible have the obligation to guarantee, within their possibilities and economic means, the full and effective enjoyment of the rights of children and adolescents. Paragraph.- In the absence of the father and/or mother, these duties will be assumed by the person who has de facto or de jure custody of the child or adolescent. Art. 71.- CONFLICT OF AUTHORITY. In cases where there is disagreement between the father and the mother regarding the exercise of their rights and duties, the Public Ministry for Children and Adolescents may reconcile the interests of the parties. Otherwise, it will empower the judge of the civil chamber of the Children's and Adolescents' Court to resolve the conflict judicially. Art. 72.- TERMINATION OF PARENTAL AUTHORITY. The authority of the father and mother ends due to: The age of majority of the adolescent; The death of the child or adolescent; The emancipation of the adolescent by judicial means or by marriage; The definitive suspension of the authority of the father and/or mother by judicial decision. Art. 73.- TEMPORARY SUSPENSION OF THE AUTHORITY OF THE FATHER AND/OR THE MOTHER. The authority of the father and/or mother may be subject to temporary suspension according to the grounds indicated below. Art. 74.- CAUSES OF TEMPORARY SUSPENSION OF THE AUTHORITY OF THE FATHER OR MOTHER. The authority of the father or mother may be subject to temporary suspension for: Lack, negligence or unjustified breach of their duties, when they have the means to fulfill them; When the father and/or mother, through action or omission, proven by the competent judge, threaten or violate the rights of the child and adolescent and put their safety and integral well-being at risk, even as a result of a disciplinary measure; Declaration of absence; Being placed under the guardianship of an adult; Civil or judicial interdiction. Art. 75.- RECOVERY OF PARENTAL AUTHORITY. The recovery of parental authority may be demanded by the interested party, after notifying the other party, once the causes for which the temporary suspension was declared have ceased. Art. 76.- CAUSES OF TERMINATION BY JUDICIAL DECISION. The grounds for termination of parental authority are: When the father or mother and/or responsible persons, de facto or de jure, are declared by judicial sentence as the material or intellectual author or accomplice of crimes or offenses against the person of the son or daughter or against the other spouse or cohabitant; When the father, mother and/or responsible person fails to comply with the obligations established by the competent judge, in the process of temporary suspension of authority; Material or intellectual author or accomplice of crimes or offenses committed, jointly, with children or adolescents; For the commission of the infractions contained in law 24-97, on domestic violence. Paragraph.- In all these infractions, and in the case of crimes, the judge will assess the damage caused to the child or adolescent, to determine whether to apply temporary suspension or order the termination of parental authority. Art. 77.- QUALITY. Those with standing to demand the suspension and termination of parental authority include: The child or adolescent concerned, taking into account their age and maturity; The father, mother or guardian, ascendants or collateral relatives up to the fourth degree of consanguinity; The Public Ministry for Children and Adolescents; The National Council for Children and Adolescents (CONANI). Art. 78.- COMPETENT COURT. Both the suspension and the loss and recovery of parental authority will be pronounced by the Children and Adolescents jurisdiction, in civil powers, after a contradictory procedure and taking into account the best interests of the child or adolescent. Paragraph.- In all procedures for temporary suspension or termination by judicial decision or recovery, the opinion of the child or adolescent will be heard, according to their age and maturity. Art. 79.- LACK OF ECONOMIC RESOURCES. Lack of economic resources is not a cause for the temporary suspension or termination of the authority of the father or mother with respect to their sons and daughters. Art. 80.- OPINION OF THE PUBLIC PROSECUTOR'S OFFICE FOR CHILDREN AND ADOLESCENTS. In any procedure for the suspension of parental authority, the prior opinion of the Public Prosecutor for Children and Adolescents is required. Art. 81.- EFFECTS. The termination of parental authority produces the following effects: If the termination occurs with respect to both parents of children and adolescents, they may: Be subject to guardianship and adoption; Parental authority may be assumed by ascendants, brothers and sisters of legal age, uncles/aunts, exceptionally, by the State. If the termination occurs with respect to one of the parents, parental authority rightfully belongs to the other. TITLE IV: ON GUARDIANSHIP AND VISITATION RIGHTS CHAPTER I: GENERAL PROVISIONS ON GUARDIANSHIP Art. 82.- DEFINITION OF GUARD. It is the physical or moral situation in which a child or adolescent finds themselves under the responsibility of one of their parents, ascendants or a third person, whether a natural or legal person, by means of a judicial decision, as a consequence of a divorce, judicial or de facto separation, declaration of absence, action or omission that violates the security and integrity, irresponsibility, abandonment, abuse or for any other reason. Art. 83.- CHARACTER AND NATURE OF GUARDIANSHIP. Guardianship is a legal institution of public order, of a provisional nature, which arises exceptionally for the comprehensive protection of the child or adolescent deprived of their family environment and to compensate for the eventual absence of one or both parents or responsible persons. Art. 84.- GRANTING OF GUARDIANSHIP. The Children's and Adolescents' Court will grant custody to the father, mother, or third party who guarantees the well-being of the child or adolescent in accordance with the best interests of the child. Paragraph.- Failure to comply with the obligations inherent to guardianship will result in the loss of guardianship, either temporarily or permanently. Art. 85.- OPINION OF THE PUBLIC PROSECUTOR'S OFFICE FOR CHILDREN AND ADOLESCENTS. In all guardianship proceedings, the prior opinion of the Public Prosecutor for Children and Adolescents is required. Art. 86.- PRONOUNCEMENT OR REVOCATION. The guardianship may be granted or revoked at any time by a duly reasoned judicial decision, after hearing the parties and the opinion of the Public Ministry for Children and Adolescents. Art. 87.- EFFECTS OF THE GUARDIANSHIP. Guardianship obliges the person granted it to provide material, moral and educational assistance to a child or adolescent, granting them the right to oppose third parties, including the parents. Paragraph.- The child or adolescent shall have the right to maintain regular and permanent direct relations with the father or mother deprived of custody, provided that this does not violate their best interests. Art. 88.- OBLIGATION OF DIRECT CONTACT WITH THE GUARDIAN. The exercise of guardianship requires direct contact with the child or adolescent and, therefore, empowers one to decide on the place of their residence. Any change must be communicated to the other parent, ascendants or other interested persons, provided that this is not contrary to the best interests of the child or adolescent. Art. 89.- OBLIGATION OF PARENTS DURING GUARDIANSHIP. The father or mother who has been deprived of the custody of the son or daughter shall maintain the maintenance obligation in the terms defined in article 170 and following of this Code, and must contribute to it in proportion to his or her resources. CHAPTER II: GUARDIANSHIP PROCEDURE Art. 90.- COMPETENT COURT. All guardianship claims must be filed with the Children's and Adolescents' Court of the place where the person exercising guardianship lives. Paragraph.- The judge competent to hear a guardianship proceeding shall also be competent to hear claims regarding alimony that are presented as an accessory or that arise from said proceeding. Art. 91.- OPINION OF THE CHILD AND ADOLESCENT. In all proceedings that may affect the custody of children and adolescents, their opinion must be heard, according to their maturity. Art. 92.- ADMISSIBILITY OF THE CLAIM. The application for guardianship may be admitted when the interested party has faithfully fulfilled the duties inherent to the obligation to provide support. Art. 93.- INADMISSIBILITY OF THE CLAIM. The claim for custody by the father, mother or responsible person who has unjustifiably refused to comply with the child or adolescent support obligation will be inadmissible. Art. 94.- VARIATIONS IN THE EXERCISE AND COMPETENCE OF THE GUARDIANSHIP. The jurisdiction to hear the application for guardianship will be governed as follows: In case of divorce, the parents will appear before the judge of First Instance in civil powers of common law; In case of change of guardianship regime or de facto separation, they will appear before the Civil judge of the Court of Children and Adolescents. Art. 95.- PRONOUNCEMENT AND REVOCATION OF GUARDIANSHIP. The guardianship must be pronounced or revoked by a duly reasoned judgment by the Court of Children, Girls and Adolescents, at the request of the interested party, the National Council for Children and Adolescents (CONANI) and/or the Public Ministry of Children, Girls and Adolescents. CHAPTER III: VISITATION REGIME Art. 96.- LINKAGE OF GUARDIANSHIP AND VISITATION REGIME. Custody and visitation rights are inextricably linked, so when issuing their rulings, the courts must ensure the protection of both rights so that parents can maintain a direct relationship with their son or daughter. Paragraph.- When granting custody to one of the parents, the judge must regulate, if he deems it appropriate, the right of visitation for the other parent, either ex officio or at the request of a party. Art. 97.- OBLIGATION TO MAINTAIN LINK. The child or adolescent has the right to have permanent contact with his or her father or mother, even in cases where one of them does not have custody. CHAPTER IV: DEMAND AND JUDGMENT OF GUARDIANSHIP AND VISITATION REGIME Art. 98.- CONCILIATION PHASE. Before initiating the judicial custody and visitation procedure, a conciliation stage will be exhausted before the Public Prosecutor for Children or Adolescents, in accordance with the terms provided by this Code. Art. 99.- CONTENT OF THE DELIVERY RECORD. If, as a result of the conciliation, the parties reach an agreement on custody, a handover document for the child or adolescent must be drawn up, signed by the representative of the Public Ministry for Children and Adolescents and other persons involved in said conciliation. The minutes will state the obligations and rights of those who assume guardianship and the penalties that will result from non-compliance. The aforementioned document will be submitted to the judge for approval or rejection; without this formality, the document will have no legal effect. The judge may request the parties to produce lawful evidence to determine the suitability of said delivery. Art. 100.- THE DOCUMENT REQUIRED FOR A DEMAND FOR GUARDIANSHIP AND VISITATION. If no agreement is reached in the conciliation phase, the lawsuit may be initiated, either directly by the interested party, in person, or through a lawyer, or at the request of the Public Ministry for Children and Adolescents. The initial claim, whether in the form of a petition or a declaration, must be filed with the clerk of the Children's and Adolescents' Court and must include: The identification and personal details of the claimant, the child, and the person(s) who are improperly withholding or obstructing visits, if applicable; The child's birth certificate, if possible; The grounds on which the claimant bases their claims; Information regarding the possible location of the child; A copy of the divorce decree, separation decree, or agreements regarding custody, guardianship, or visitation rights, duly certified by the competent authority, if any; Certifications, declarations, or any other relevant evidence. Art. 101.- MANDATORY PRESENCE OF PARENTS. The presence of both parents will be required throughout the procedure. The judge may order the appearance of anyone who refuses to appear. Exceptionally, the judge may accept legal representation. Art. 102.- ASSESSMENT FOR THE REQUEST FOR GUARDIANSHIP AND/OR VISIT. To issue a ruling on custody and/or visitation rights, the Judge of Children and Adolescents must consider, first and foremost, the best interests of the child or adolescent, and also: The socio-family report provided by the multidisciplinary unit of the National Council for Children and Adolescents (CONANI); Any prior agreements reached by the father and mother; The divorce decree, if any; Repeated violations of prior agreements; Additionally, the judge must weigh all lawful means of proof to determine the suitability of the parties seeking custody and/or visitation rights. Art. 103.- SCHEDULING OF VISITS. The visitation schedule must include: The right of access to the child's residence; The possibility of their transfer to another location for hours and days; The periodicity and frequency of visits, holidays, and other matters; Extension of visits to ascendants and siblings over 18 years of age, if requested; Any other form of contact between the child and the person granted visitation, such as written, telephone, and electronic communications, provided that the rights of the child are not violated.

Art. 104.- PENALTIES. The father or mother who obstructs or violates the agreements or infringes the provisions of the sentence regarding custody and visitation may be sanctioned with one day of imprisonment for each day or fraction of a day that the violation of the provisions of the sentence lasts, and the deprivation of liberty may not, for this reason, exceed six (6) months. All of the above is without prejudice to the provisions of Article 110. Art. 105.- APPROVAL. When approving the agreement, such as the custody and/or visitation rights ruling, in addition to the specific mentions of these decisions, the judge will indicate the sanctions that will be applied to the party that does not comply with the obligations established in this Code. Art. 106.- OBLIGATION OF THE PUBLIC PROSECUTOR'S OFFICE FOR CHILDREN AND ADOLESCENTS. Once a sentence is handed down, the Public Prosecutor's Office for Children and Adolescents is obligated to ensure the peaceful enjoyment of custody and visitation rights under the conditions in which they were granted. Art. 107.- FINES FOR NON-COMPLIANCE. Failure to comply with the provisional custody or personal care order and the obligations contracted and recorded in the delivery record will result in fines of one (1) to three (3) official minimum wages, which will be imposed by the competent Children and Adolescents Judge, at the request of the Public Ministry of Children and Adolescents or interested party. Art. 108.- ON REVOCATION. Given the provisional nature of the custody and visitation arrangements, they may be revoked by the Children's Court, at the request of an interested party, the Public Prosecutor for Children and Adolescents and the National Council for Children and Adolescents (CONANI), whenever the best interests of the children and adolescents justify it, for which the procedure described above will be followed. Art. 109.- COMPETITION. Judges of children and adolescents, or, failing that, justices of the peace, will be competent to grant permits for children and adolescents to leave the country, when there is disagreement in this regard between the father and the mother or the legal representative. CHAPTER V: ON THE ILLEGAL TRANSFER OR RETENTION OF A CHILD OR ADOLESCENT Art. 110.- ILLEGAL TRANSFER OR RETENTION OF A CHILD OR ADOLESCENT. When a person, beyond the rights that have been recognized, retains a child or adolescent, or moves him or her to a place or country different from the one in which he or she has his or her habitual residence, without due authorization, it will be considered as illegal transfer or retention of a child or adolescent. The Public Prosecutor's Office for Children and Adolescents must return the child or adolescent to the person who legally has custody. If the transfer was to another country, you must take the appropriate steps to claim its return from the authorities of that country. TITLE V: FILIATION BY ADOPTION CHAPTER I: GENERAL PROVISIONS ON ADOPTION Art. 111.- NATURE. Adoption is a legal institution of public order and social interest that allows the creation, through a judgment rendered for this purpose, of a voluntary parent-child relationship between people who do not have it by nature. Art. 112.- SOCIAL AND HUMAN CHARACTER. Adoption is a measure of family integration and protection for children and adolescents based on their best interests, and the process must be carried out under the supreme supervision of the State. Art. 113.- EXCEPTIONALITY. Adoption should be considered only in exceptional cases and under the circumstances determined in this Code. Art. 114.- STATE RESPONSIBILITY. The State has the obligation to create the necessary mechanisms to prevent adoption from being used indiscriminately. For this purpose, the administrative procedures must be channeled through the Adoption Department of the National Council for Children and Adolescents (CONANI), and need to be approved by the Court of Children and Adolescents. CHAPTER II: MODALITIES OF ADOPTION Art. 115.- GENERALITIES. Adoption is only for privileged individuals. Privileged adoption can be national or international, depending on whether the adopters are Dominicans residing in the country or foreign citizens. Art. 116.- PRIVILEGED ADOPTION. In privileged adoption, the adopted person ceases to belong to their blood family and the kinship with its members is extinguished, as well as all its legal effects, with the exception of marriage impediments. The adopted child has the same rights and obligations as a biological child in the adoptive family. Privileged adoption is irrevocable. CHAPTER III: NATIONAL PRIVILEGED ADOPTION SECTION I: SUBSTANTIVE CONDITIONS OF PRIVILEGED ADOPTION SUBSECTION I: OF THE PERSONS WHO MAY ADOPT AND BE ADOPTED Art. 117.- THE APTITUDE TO ADOPT. People over 30 years of age may adopt, regardless of their marital status, provided that the adopter guarantees physical, moral, social and sexual suitability, which allows them to offer a child or adolescent a home that guarantees their integral well-being. The same qualities will be required of those who adopt jointly. The maximum age for adoption is 60 years. Exceptionally, a person over this age may adopt in the following situations: a) When they have raised, cared for and protected the child or adolescent prior to the adoption application; b) In cases of relatives who want to adopt a child or adolescent, when the parents or guardians have been judicially deprived of custody. Art. 118.- WHO CAN ADOPT. The following may adopt: a) Dominican spouses, married for three (3) years; and foreigners, married for five (5) years; b) Dominican couples, consisting of a man and a woman, when they demonstrate uninterrupted cohabitation for at least five (5) years; c) Single persons who, in fact, have or have had the responsibility for the upbringing, care, and education of a child or adolescent; d) Widows or widowers, if both had begun the adoption procedure during the lifetime of the surviving spouse; e) Divorced or separated spouses when the adoption procedure already existed at the time of the divorce or separation; f) Spouses in marriage or partners in a consensual union may formalize the adoption of the child of the other spouse; g) Grandparents, uncles, and siblings of legal age, adopting their grandchildren, nephews, and siblings of legal age, whose father or mother or both parents have died and the adoptive parents can guarantee the comprehensive well-being of their relatives. Art. 119.- SINGLE PERSON. When the adoption application comes from a single person, the relevant agencies must carefully consider the adopter's motives in order to avoid distorting the spirit of the adoption institution and to promote, as far as possible, optimal physical, psychological, social and sexual development for the future adoptee. Art. 120.- EXISTENCE OF BIOLOGICAL SONS AND DAUGHTERS. The existence of children of the adoptive parents will not be an obstacle to adoption. However, when in these cases the children are over 12 years of age, they must express their opinion on the adoption by appearing in person before the Judge of Children and Adolescents or before the consulate of the country where the biological children of the adopters reside, which will receive their opinion on the adoption and record it in a document that will be sent to the competent authorities in matters of adoption. Exceptionally, due to circumstances deemed appropriate by the judge, they may communicate their point of view on said adoption in writing. SUBSECTION II: CONDITIONS RELATING TO ADOPTED CHILDREN Art. 121.- AGE OF THE ADOPTED ONE. Adoption will proceed in favor of persons under 18 years of age at the date of the application. Art. 122.- WHO CAN BE ADOPTED. The following may be adopted: a) Children or adolescents who are orphans of both parents; b) Children or adolescents of unknown parents, who are under the guardianship of the State; c) Children or adolescents whose father and mother have been deprived of parental authority by court order; d) Children or adolescents whose parents consent to the adoption. Paragraph.- No one may benefit from more than one adoption. Art. 123.- AGE DIFFERENCES BETWEEN THE ADOPTER AND THE ADOPTED. There must be an age difference of no less than 15 years between the adopter and the adopted child, which is compatible with a parent-child relationship. This age difference will not be required when the adoption is made in favor of the son or daughter of the other spouse, with the prior consent of the mother or father, if the latter has acknowledged him or her. SECTION II: FORMAL CONDITIONS OF PRIVILEGED ADOPTION Art. 124.- PARENTAL CONSENT. It is the responsibility of the father and the mother to validly and voluntarily consent to the privileged adoption of their sons and daughters. Art. 125.- THE FORMS OF CONSENT. In the cases provided for, consent will be given at the time of the adoption itself or by a separate authentic act, before a notary or before the justice of the peace of the domicile or residence of the ascendant, or before diplomatic or consular agents abroad. Art. 126.- PERSONS CAPABLE OF EXPRESSING THEIR CONSENT. They are capable of expressing their consent: a) Married parents or parents in a consensual union: In the case of adoption of children, declared or recognized, the father and mother must give their consent to the adoption of the child with respect to whom filiation has been established; b) The father or mother with the impossibility of expressing their consent: If one of them has died or is unable to express their will, the consent of the other is sufficient. If the father and mother of the child or adolescent have died or are unable to express their will due to absence, disappearance or mental incapacity, consent must be given by the legal representative or ad-hoc guardian; c) Separated or divorced father and mother: If the father and mother are separated or divorced, the consent of both parents is necessary. In case of disagreement between both parents regarding the adoption of the child or adolescent, the civil chamber of the children's or adolescents' court will be competent to decide whether or not the adoption is appropriate with the sole consent of the parent who has custody; d) Consent in case of father and mother deprived of authority: The condition of child or adolescent whose parents have lost their authority will be proven by the declaration of loss of authority through the presentation of the judgment that so stipulates. Consent must be given by the legal representative, after consultation with the Family Council; e) Children of unknown parents: When dealing with a child of unknown parents, consent will be given by the Presidency of the National Council for Children and Adolescents (CONANI), in its capacity as ad-hoc guardian. Paragraph I.- The status of a child or adolescent of unknown parentage will be proven by the declaration of abandonment sentence, ordered by the Court of Children and Adolescents where the child or adolescent was found. Paragraph II.- If the adopted persons are over twelve (12) years of age, they must personally agree to their own adoption. In every adoption procedure, the child or adolescent must be heard, taking into account their age and maturity. Art. 127.- CONSENT OF THE ADOPTING SPOUSES. Neither spouse may adopt without the consent of the other, except in cases of separation or presumption of absence or disappearance. SECTION III: PRIVILEGED ADOPTION PROCEDURE Art. 128.- PHASES OF THE PROCEDURE. Adoption is a legal institution whose procedure is administrative and jurisdictional in nature. Its procedure is divided into two phases: administrative protection and administrative jurisdictional. SUBSECTION I: ADMINISTRATIVE PHASE OF PRIVILEGED ADOPTION Art. 129.- ORGANIZATION IN CHARGE. The administrative phase of protection is the responsibility of the Adoption Department of the National Council for Children and Adolescents (CONANI). The administrative phase of protection will have two procedures to follow, depending on whether it is a voluntary surrender or is preceded by a declaration of abandonment or loss of parental authority. Art. 130.- VOLUNTARY SURRENDER. The father or mother who decides to give their son or daughter up for adoption must communicate their decision to the Adoption Department of the National Council for Children and Adolescents (CONANI) and justify the reasons for said delivery, so that this body can select an adoptive family for the child or adolescent, from among those who have made an application for adoption before this entity. Paragraph.- If the National Council for Children and Adolescents (CONANI) receives the child or adolescent, until the adoptive family is selected, the care and protection will be under its responsibility. Art. 131.- CONSENT VOLUNTARY DELIVERY. The adoption will be carried out through an authentic act between the biological parents and the president of the National Council for Children and Adolescents (CONANI), complying with all the requirements of the law. Art. 132.- ADOPTION DUE TO UNKNOWN PARENTAGE. In cases of adoption due to unknown parentage, it must be preceded by the declaration of abandonment, which will be duly issued by the Court of First Instance for Children and Adolescents, in accordance with the terms of this Code, upon request of the National Council for Children and Adolescents (CONANI), who will present to it the results of the investigation on the abandonment of which the child or adolescent has been a victim. Once the court issues the administrative ruling, it will send it to the Adoption Department of the National Council for Children and Adolescents (CONANI), so that it can proceed with the formalization of the adoption. Art. 133.- ADOPTION PRECEDED BY DECLARATION OF LOSS OF PARENTAL AUTHORITY. In cases of children and adolescents whose parents have lost their parental authority through a ruling by the Children's Court, the Adoption Department of the National Council for Children and Adolescents will promote their adoption into the extended family or assign them to a family that has applied for adoption through that entity. Art. 134.- PROVISIONAL COHABITATION OF THE ADOPTORS. Every adoption application must be preceded by a period of cohabitation between the adoptive parents and the adopted child for the period established in this Code, taking into account the circumstances of each case. Paragraph I.- In the event that the adopter is a resident or domiciled outside the country, the period of cohabitation within the national territory will have a minimum duration of sixty (60) days, when it is a matter of children under twelve (12) years of age, and of thirty (30) days, when the adopted child is over twelve (12) years of age. Paragraph II.- However, the interested party, due to force majeure or taking into account the circumstances of the case, may request the reduction of the cohabitation time from the judge, provided that an institution of the country of origin of the adopters guarantees the safety of the child or adolescent to be adopted, as well as compliance with the conditions of cohabitation. When it involves a boy or girl, in no case may the cohabitation be less than thirty (30) days. Art. 135.- ASSIGNMENT OF FAMILIES TO CHILDREN AND ADOLESCENTS ELIGIBLE FOR ADOPTION. The National Council for Children and Adolescents will assign children and adolescents to prospective adoptive families according to the following criteria: a) Preference will be given, once the requirements established by this Code have been met, to applications submitted by Dominican adopters over those submitted by foreign adopters; b) The order of arrival of the adoption application will be taken into account. To control the order of the file, each application will be assigned a number in order of arrival; c) Characteristics of the child and adolescent. The primary criterion should be to find a family for a child or adolescent, avoiding assignments that respond to criteria other than the best interests of the child or adolescent; d) Applications from Dominican citizens will be preferred and, failing that, citizens from a country that has ratified or adhered to the Hague Convention on Adoption. In this case, the adoption will be subject to the clauses established therein. Art. 136.- COMMISSION FOR THE ASSIGNMENT OF CHILDREN AND ADOLESCENTS TO ADOPTIVE FAMILIES. Children and adolescents eligible for adoption will be assigned by the Assignment Commission, which will be composed of the director of the Adoption Department of the National Council for Children and Adolescents (CONANI) and a psychologist from said Council, the person in charge of the home responsible for the children eligible for adoption, if that is the case, and two psychologists from two non-governmental organizations that work in the area of ​​family or children's rights. Paragraph.- The Commission will meet once a month or as often as the needs require to make the corresponding allocation, always complying with the criteria established in the previous article. Art. 137.- CERTIFICATION OF COMPLIANCE WITH ALLOCATION CRITERIA. Once a family has been assigned to a child or adolescent, the Assignment Commission will draw up a record in which it is explained and certified that the assignment criteria established in article 135 were met. The minutes will not be valid unless they are signed by two-thirds of the members of the Commission. Paragraph.- Any conflicts that arise will be resolved by the Judge of Children and Adolescents, upon request of the interested party. Art. 138.- ISSUANCE OF CERTIFICATE OF SUITABILITY. Once the administrative procedure in the Adoption Department of the National Council for Children and Adolescents (CONANI) has been exhausted, this entity will issue the certificate of suitability to allow prospective adoptive parents to submit their application for homologation before the trial jurisdiction. Paragraph.- The National Council for Children and Adolescents (CONANI) must issue the certificate of suitability within a period of no more than two months, from the date of expiration of the cohabitation period. Failure to meet this deadline is considered a serious offense in the performance of their duties, for the person or persons responsible for its issuance. SUBSECTION II: JURISDICTIONAL ADMINISTRATIVE PHASE OF PRIVILEGED ADOPTION Art. 139.- PERSONS WITH THE CAPACITY TO REQUEST ADOPTION. The application for homologation of the adoption can only be submitted by those interested in being declared adopters or their representative, before the Court of Children and Adolescents of the domicile of the person or entity under whose care the adopted child is located. Art. 140.- DOCUMENTS PROVING SUITABILITY. The application for homologation of the adoption, signed by the adoptive parent(s), must be submitted in person or by their representative, accompanied by the following documents: a) Biopsychosocial study of the adoptive parents; b) Duly legalized adoption consent; c) Birth certificate of the adoptive parents and the adoptee; d) Marriage certificate or certificate of notoriety stating the extramarital cohabitation of the adoptive parents, without prejudice to the other requirements established by this Code; e) Copy of the declaration of loss of parental authority or adoption authorization, as applicable; f) Certificate of suitability, valid for no more than six months, issued by the Adoption Department of the National Council for Children and Adolescents; g) Certification from a civic, community, or religious entity regarding the physical, mental, social, and moral suitability of the adoptive parents; h) Cohabitation certificate from the National Council for Children and Adolescents; i) Certification of compliance with child and adolescent assignment criteria, issued by the Commission for the Assignment of Children and Adolescents to Adoptive Families; j) Certificate of no criminal record and certificate of no delinquency of the adoptive parents, issued by the competent authority; k) Medical certificate of the adoptive parents; l) Special power of attorney granted to the lawyer of the adoptive party, duly legalized by the Attorney General's Office; m) Copy of the identity cards or passports of the adoptive parents and biological parents; n) Act of non-opposition from the children over twelve years of age of the adoptive parents, if any. Art. 141.- APPLICATION FOR ADOPTION. The application for homologation of the adoption will be submitted to the civil chamber of the Court of Children, Girls and Adolescents, accompanied by the documents described in the previous article. Paragraph I.- Within three days of receiving the lawsuit, the court will send the file to the Public Ministry for Children and Adolescents, who will issue their opinion within five (5) days of receiving it. Paragraph II.- Once the above deadlines have expired, the Judge of Children and Adolescents will issue a ruling, approving or rejecting the request, within the following ten days. Art. 142.- INSUFFICIENCY OF EVIDENT DOCUMENTS. When the judge deems the supporting documents of suitability accompanying the file insufficient, as established in article 140, he or she shall grant a period of ten (10) days to the interested party to complete the file. Once this period has expired, the Judge of Children and Adolescents will make the corresponding decision within the following ten (10) days. Art. 143.- CONTRADICTORY ADOPTION DEMAND. In the event that the adoption claim is challenged, the procedure will become adversarial and, in that sense, the Judge of Children and Adolescents will set a hearing for its knowledge. Paragraph I.- The father or mother and, in their absence, their relatives up to the fourth degree, following the order of succession, the National Council for Children and Adolescents (CONANI) and the Public Ministry of Children and Adolescents have the right to challenge the adoption claim. Paragraph II.- The judgment resulting from the lawsuit referred to in this article may be appealed to the Court of Appeal for Children and Adolescents. Art. 144.- DEATH OF ONE OF THE ADOPTERS. If the adoption is joint and one of the adopters dies before the judgment is issued, the process will continue with the survivor who expresses their will to persist in it. Paragraph.- If the adoption application is made by only one adopter and the adopter dies before a sentence is issued, the process will continue with its legal effects and in accordance with the express will of the deceased and the best interests of the child. Art. 145.- SEPARATION OR DIVORCE OF THE ADOPTORS. If the adoptive parents divorce or if a legal separation is declared between them, the court will apply to the adopted children the rules relating to custody and visitation rights established in this Code. Art. 146.- OF THE FAMILY COUNCIL OF THE ADOPTED CHILD. The Family Council of an adopted person will be constituted in the manner provided for in the Civil Code. Art. 147.- REQUIREMENTS FOR THE ADOPTED PERSON'S LEAVE ABROAD. To allow the departure from the country of a child or adolescent adopted, whether by foreigners or by Dominicans, the judgment that homologates the adoption must be registered and duly legalized in the Attorney General's Office, in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and in the consulate of the country of origin of the adopters. Immigration authorities will require an authentic copy of the adoption decree with proof of enforceability. SUBSECTION III: PRIVILEGED ADOPTION JUDGMENTS AND THEIR PUBLICITY Art. 148.- CONTENT. The adoption decision will be reasoned, even if it has an administrative-jurisdictional character, and must be written in clear and precise terms. Art. 149.- TRANSCRIPTION OF THE SENTENCE. Only the operative part of the adoption decree must be transcribed in the adoption registry of the Civil Registry Office in which the birth declaration of the child or adolescent was made. This transcription must be made within thirty days after the date on which the adoption judgment has acquired the authority of a final and irrevocable judgment. Paragraph.- The transcription will state the day, time and place of birth, the sex of the child or adolescent, their names, as they appear in the adoption decree, and the names, surnames, date and place of birth, profession and address of the adopter(s). The transcript will not contain any indication relating to the adoptee's previous parentage. Art. 150.- REQUEST AND ISSUANCE OF COPIES. The transcript of the adoption decree will replace the birth certificate of the adopted person. Civil Registry officials, when issuing a copy of the birth certificate of the child or adolescent who has been adopted, when referring to it in any act they carry out, will not make any mention of this circumstance or of the real parentage and will only refer to the surnames of the adoptive parents. Art. 151.- MARGINAL NOTES. When transcribing the adoption decree in the adoption register, the Civil Registry Officer will write the word "adoption" in the upper margin of the book of the original birth declaration of the adoptee. The latter will only regain its validity if the adoption ruling is revoked. Art. 152.- RESERVATION OF DOCUMENTS. All documents and administrative or jurisdictional actions related to the adoption process will be kept confidential for a period of thirty (30) years, in a Children's and Adolescents' Court. Copies of these documents may only be issued at the request of the adoptive parents or the adopted person upon reaching the age of majority and the Public Ministry for Children and Adolescents. Paragraph I.- The official or employee who allows access to the documents referred to or who issues copies of them to persons not authorized in this article, will incur an abuse of power and will be sanctioned with dismissal from office and a fine of one (1) to three (3) officially established minimum wages. Paragraph II.- The Court for Children and Adolescents is competent to hear this offense. Art. 153.- LIFTING OF THE RESERVE. The Court of Appeal for Children and Adolescents, corresponding to the court of first instance that approved the adoption, will order the lifting of the reserve when there are serious reasons that justify it or when the extraordinary appeal for civil review has been admitted. Art. 154.- RIGHT OF THE ADOPTED PERSON TO KNOW THEIR FAMILY RELATIONSHIP. Without prejudice to the provisions of the preceding article, every adopted person shall have the right to know his or her origin and the nature of his or her family relationship. The adoptive father and mother will determine the appropriate time to communicate this information to him. Art. 155.- NOTIFICATION OF THE APPROVAL JUDGMENT. The sentence that approves the adoption act must be notified to the biological father and mother or those responsible who consented to it, at the request of the Judge of Children and Adolescents. Art. 156.- SUSPENSION OF PROCEDURES. At the request of an interested party and for justified reasons, the Children's and Adolescents' Court may order the suspension of the adoption process for up to a non-extendable term of three (3) months. Art. 157.- IRREVOCABILITY OF PRIVILEGED ADOPTION. The privileged adoption ruling is constitutive of rights and is irrevocable since the decision that pronounced it has acquired the authority of res judicata. Art. 158.- EFFECTS OF THE ADOPTION JUDGMENT. The adoption approval ruling will produce all the effects creating rights and obligations inherent to the mother or father-child relationship. It will contain the necessary data so that its registration in the civil registry constitutes a birth certificate and replaces the original one, which will be cancelled. The sentence will omit the name of the biological father and mother, if they are known. In detail, adoption produces the following effects: a) Breaking of family ties of origin. Privileged adoption causes the original parent-child ties to expire in all their civil effects; only the impediments to marriage remain; b) Creation of paternal-maternal filial ties. The adopter and their family acquire through adoption the rights and obligations of the parent-child relationship, with all the prerogatives and consequences of a personal, patrimonial and succession nature; c) Impediment to marriage. Marriage is prohibited between:

1. The adoptive parent and their ascendants and the adopted child and their descendants;
2. The adopted child and the spouse of the adoptive parent, and reciprocally between the adoptive parent and the spouse of the adopted child;
3. The adopted sons and daughters of the same person;
4. The adopted child or the children who may outlive the adoptive parent.

d) Inheritance rights. The adopted person acquires all the rights of sons and daughters as a reserved heir and comes into the succession of the family members in both the direct and collateral lines; e) Surname. The adopted child acquires the surname(s) of the adoptive parent(s); f) Authority. Parental authority and its effects shift from biological parents to adoptive parents. Art. 159.- EFFECT BETWEEN THE PARTIES AND THIRD PARTIES. The adoption takes effect between the parties and is enforceable against third parties from the date of transcription of the judgment in the records of the corresponding Civil Registry Office. SUB-SECTION IV: NULLITY OF ADOPTION Art. – 160.- NULLITY OF THE ADOPTION SENTENCE. The annulment of the adoption decree may be requested when serious irregularities of substance or of the procedure established in this Code are verified. Art. 161.- WHO CAN DEMAND THE NULLITY. The adoption, after the homologation ruling has been issued, may be annulled at the request of the adopted person or their biological parents or the National Council for Children and Adolescents (CONANI) and the Public Ministry for Children and Adolescents. Art. 162.- COMPETENT COURT. The civil chamber of the Children's and Adolescents' Court is competent to hear the claim for annulment of the adoption homologation judgment. Paragraph.- The judgment resulting from the lawsuit for annulment of the adoption referred to in this article may be appealed to the Court of Children and Adolescents. Art. 163.- TERMS. The time limits for filing a claim for annulment and for appeal and review will be those of common law. CHAPTER IV: INTERNATIONAL ADOPTION SECTION I: GENERAL INFORMATION ON INTERNATIONAL ADOPTION Art. 164.- DEFINITION AND NATURE. International adoption is considered to occur when the adoptive parents and the adoptee are nationals of different countries or have domicile or habitual residence in different States. Paragraph.- Adoptions by foreigners who, at the time of the application, have been habitually residing in the country for more than 3 years or are married to a national, will be governed by the provisions provided by this Code for privileged adoption carried out by Dominicans. Art. 165.- CONDITIONS TO BE AN ADOPTER. The adopters of a Dominican child or adolescent must be people of different sexes, united in marriage, and comply with all the legal requirements established in this Code for privileged adoption. Paragraph I.- A Dominican may adopt a foreigner or be adopted by a foreigner. When the adoptive couple has adolescent children over 12 years of age, the procedure will be as provided in article 120. Paragraph II.- All international adoptions carried out in the Dominican Republic shall be governed by the provisions of this Code, the Convention on the Rights of the Child and the Hague Convention on Adoption. Art. 166.- DOCUMENTS PROVING SUITABILITY PRESENTED BY FOREIGNERS. If the adoptive parents are foreigners or Dominicans residing outside the country, they must also provide the following documents: a) Certification issued by the officially authorized body or authority, stating the commitment to monitor the child or adolescent in the adoption process until their naturalization in the country of residence of the adoptive parents; b) Authorization or visa from the government of the country of residence of the adoptive parents for the entry of the adopted child or adolescent; c) In addition to the required documents, proving suitability for adoption, specified in article 140, the competent administrative authority will be empowered to request other documents from the country of the foreigner or of residence of the Dominican adoptive parent, which it considers necessary for these purposes. Paragraph.- If the documents indicated above are not written in Spanish, they must be translated by a duly legalized judicial interpreter, with the corresponding formalities. Art. 167.- ADVICE. The Adoption Office of the National Council for Children and Adolescents (CONANI) may request advice from public or private persons, or competent professionals, in order to guarantee the monitoring of children and adolescents adopted by foreigners. SECTION II: COMPETENCE Art. 168.- JURISDICTION OF THE COURTS FOR CHILDREN AND ADOLESCENTS. The civil chamber of the Children's and Adolescents' Court of the place of residence of the adopted person, or the domicile of the natural or legal person or entity under whose care the adopted person is, will be competent to grant the international adoption, under the conditions established for privileged adoption. Art. 169.- REPEAL. Any provision concerning adoption that is contrary to the provisions of this Code is hereby repealed. TITLE VI: ON FOOD SECTION I: GENERALITIES Art. 170.- DEFINITION AND NATURE OF FOODS. Food is understood as the care, services and products aimed at satisfying the basic needs of a child or adolescent, essential for their sustenance and development: food, housing, clothing, assistance, medical care, medicines, recreation, comprehensive training, academic education. These obligations are a matter of public order. Art. 171.- WHO IS OBLIGATED. The child or adolescent has the right to receive food from their father or mother and responsible person. Paragraph I.- In cases of children and adolescents with special physical or mental needs, the obligation of the father and mother to provide support must be maintained until the beneficiary can support himself financially, even if he has reached the age of majority. Paragraph II.- In the event of the death of the father, mother or responsible persons, brothers or sisters of legal age, ascendants in order of proximity and collateral relatives up to the third degree or, failing that, the State, are obligated to provide food in a subsidiary manner until the fulfillment of eighteen (18) years of age. Paragraph III.- If the person obligated to provide food is an adolescent, their parents are jointly and severally responsible for this obligation, and as such, they may be sued. In this case, all measures that enable compliance with it may be ordered, with the exception of deprivation of liberty. Art. 172.- PERSONS WITH THE RIGHT TO SUE. The mother, father or responsible person who has custody and care of the child or adolescent will have the right to claim alimony. Teenage mothers and those who are legally emancipated will also have the right to sue. Art. 173.- RIGHT OF THE PREGNANT WOMAN AND THE CHILD. A pregnant woman may claim support for the unborn child from the legitimate father or the one who has acknowledged paternity, in the case of an extramarital child. The pregnant mother must be provided with the expenses of pregnancy, childbirth and post-partum until the third month after delivery. SECTION II: PROCEDURES Art. 174.- (Amended by Law No. 52-07). REASON FOR FIRING THE INTRODUCTIVE LAWSUIT. When the father, mother or guardian has failed to fulfill the obligation to provide support to a child or adolescent, the procedure for fulfilling this obligation may be initiated. The same may be initiated before the public prosecutor of the justice of the peace, of the place of residence of the child or adolescent. Art. 175.- CONCILIATION AND TIME LIMITS. Once the complaint has been filed, the Public Prosecutor will summon the parties to carry out the conciliation, within a period of no more than ten (10) days, in which the amount of the alimony obligation, the place and manner of its fulfillment, the person to whom the payment must be made and other aspects that are deemed necessary will be determined. Paragraph.- In the event that the parties do not reach an agreement, the social worker of the multidisciplinary team of the National Council for Children and Adolescents will have a period of ten (10) days to carry out the relevant socioeconomic investigations, if necessary. Art. 176.- (Amended by Law No. 52-07). COURT AUTHORIZATION AND SETTING OF HEARING. If the person obligated to provide maintenance to the child or adolescent does not appear, if there is no conciliation between the parties, or if the conciliation fails or is not fulfilled, any interested party may empower the competent justice of the peace for knowledge and decision on the matter, within a period of no more than ten (10) days from the date on which the public prosecutor and the social worker have exhausted the conciliation and investigation phase. "Paragraph.- The competent court to hear the claim for maintenance is the Justice of the Peace Court, with special powers for children and adolescents, and it will be governed by the procedure established in this section." Art. 177.- MODALITY AND CONTENT OF THE INTRODUCTORY DEMAND. The introductory claim may be filed either in writing or orally before the clerk of the court. In the latter case, a record will be drawn up regarding the statements of the interested parties, which will be signed by the participants. Paragraph I.- The claim must state the names of the parties, the place where they should be notified, the amount of the alimony, the facts that serve as the basis and the evidence that is to be asserted and will be accompanied by the documents that are in the possession of the plaintiff. Paragraph II.- If any document is missing that the plaintiff is unable to attach to the claim, the judge, after receiving a report from the clerk, at the request of the party, will order the corresponding authority to issue the document free of charge and send it to the court to attach it to the file. Art. 178.- (Amended by Law No. 52-07). DOCUMENTS AND EVIDENCE PROVIDED BY THE PARTIES. For the purposes of setting alimony in the process, the judge or the representative of the public ministry may request from the defendant father or mother a certificate of their income and a copy of the last income tax return or, failing that, the respective certificate of their income or wages issued by the employer.» Art. 179.- PATERNITY INVESTIGATION. Paternity investigations are permitted for the purposes of this Code, without prejudice to the provisions of other laws. Paragraph.- A well-known possession of status, any incontestable, conclusive or reasonable fact relating to the paternity being investigated, could serve as proof. Art. 180.- EFFECT OF THE DEMAND FOR PATERNITY INVESTIGATION. The paternity investigation claim will not have a suspensive effect on the execution of the judgment that has established a maintenance obligation to said father or mother. Art. 181.- (Amended by Law No. 52-07). PROVISIONAL PENSION. At the request of an interested party or the public prosecutor, the judge may order that provisional alimony be granted from the admission of the claim, provided that it concerns children born within marriage, consensual union or whose paternity has been accepted or scientifically demonstrated, the interested party will provide the evidence on the income of the defendant and/or the judge ex officio will require the corresponding evidence from any public or private entity that he deems necessary to establish the amount of the alimony. "Paragraph.- The General Directorate of Migration and the Department of Exit Impediments of the Attorney General's Office will be notified so that the defendant cannot leave the country without providing sufficient guarantee to support compliance with the obligation." Art. 182.- GUARANTEE FOR THE PAYMENT OF THE ALIMONY OBLIGATION. The person sued or obligated by judgment or amicable agreement to pay alimony, may only leave the country if they pay in advance, at least, the equivalent of one year of alimony, and the subscription of a guarantee bond of the credit in favor of the alimony recipient or their representative, with an insurance company that, in the opinion of the plaintiff, is of recognized economic solvency in the country. Art. 183.- PRONOUNCEMENT OF THE SENTENCE. The judge, after hearing the reading of the documents, will question each party and will issue the sentence at the same hearing if possible or at another hearing that he will set within the following six (6) days. On that date, the judge will deliver the verdict in a public hearing, even if the parties and their representatives are not present. Art. 184.- FAILURE TO OBSERVE DEADLINES. Failure to comply with the time limits established by this Code may not be grounds for annulment, provided that more than ten (10) days elapse between the date of the first summons and the day of the hearing. SECTION III: MEASURES ORDERED BY JUDGMENT Art. 185.- PAYMENT METHOD. The judgment may stipulate that the alimony be paid and secured through the establishment of a capital whose income satisfies it. Art. 186.- NON-COMPLIANCE WITH THE SENTENCE. If the defendant does not comply with the order within ten (10) days following notification, the plaintiff may request the judge who issued the judgment to order, by means of an enforceable order on a draft, notwithstanding any appeal, the seizure or attachment of the debtor's movable or immovable property in the amount necessary to obtain the capital owed, with priority over the other creditors and its sale or auction within the term set by the judge, observing, where appropriate, the provisions provided in articles 48 to 58 of the Code of Civil Procedure and its amendments. Art. 187.- (Amended by Law No. 52-07). NOTIFICATION OF THE JUDGMENT TO THE EMPLOYER OF THE DEFENDANT. When the father or mother obligated to provide maintenance is a salaried employee, the plaintiff or the public prosecutor will notify the employer of the sentence by means of a bailiff, so that the employer deducts the amount of the maintenance obligation without such amount exceeding monthly fifty percent (50%) of the salary and his employment benefits after the legal deductions. Paragraph I.- Failure to make the corresponding salary deduction makes the employer jointly liable for the amounts not deducted. Paragraph II.- When it is not possible to deduct wages and benefits, but the ownership of movable or immovable property, or other patrimonial rights of any nature of the defendant is demonstrated, the judge may proceed in the manner provided in the preceding article. The tools and implements of the person called to fulfill the alimony obligation will be excluded from the seizure and confiscation. Paragraph III.- The salaries of public employees will also be affected by this measure.» Art. 188.- SEIZED GOODS. If the assets of the obligated person or their income are seized by virtue of a previous action, based on alimony or affected to the fulfillment of an alimony judgment, the judge who issued the last judgment, at the request of the interested party, will assume knowledge of the different processes for the sole purpose of indicating the amount of alimony payments, taking into account the conditions of the alimony provider and the needs of the different alimony recipients. Art. 189.- ESTIMATE OF THE DEFENDANT'S INCOME. When it is not possible to establish the amount of the alimony payer's income, the judge may estimate it taking into account his social and economic position. In any case, it will be presumed that he earns at least the official minimum wage. Art. 190.- ALIMONY OBLIGATION. When the father or mother is given the sanction of suspension or loss of authority, the obligation to provide support will not cease. This obligation ends for the reasons prescribed in this Code, except for the exceptions indicated in article 171. Art. 191.- CHARACTER. The right to claim alimony cannot be transferred upon death, nor sold, assigned, or waived; the person who owes alimony cannot oppose the claimant in compensation what the latter owes him or her. Art. 192.- (Amended by Law No. 52-07). EFFECTS OF DEPRIVATION OF LIBERTY. The effects of the sentence are suspended when the convicted party fulfills all of its obligations. Paragraph.- However, the public prosecutor or the judge in charge of the execution of the sentence may suspend imprisonment when the defendant has fulfilled more than half of the payment of the obligation established in the sentence, after prior agreement on the method of payment and the guarantees of compliance with the remaining part.» Art. 193.- BREACH OF OBLIGATIONS. Failure to comply with the obligation undertaken in accordance with the provisions of the previous article will result in the person who violated the agreement being deprived of liberty again. In case of recidivism, the defendant will not be able to benefit from the provisions established above. SECTION IV: EXECUTION AND APPEAL AGAINST ALIMONY JUDGMENTS Art. 194.- (Amended by Law No. 52-07). ADMISSIBLE NATURE AND RESOURCES. The judgment issued will be considered contradictory, whether or not the legally summoned parties appear. It will not be subject to the appeal. Paragraph.- The appeal in this matter does not suspend the execution of the sentence and may benefit both the respondent and the appellant. The appeal will be heard by the Criminal Chamber of the Children's and Adolescents' Court; where there is none, the Children's and Adolescents' Court with criminal powers, and failing that, the Criminal Chamber of the Court of First Instance, if it is divided into Chambers, or with criminal powers in the case of full jurisdiction, of the territorial demarcation to which the justice of the peace court that heard the action in the first instance belongs.» Art. 195.- (Amended by Law No. 52-07). IMPLEMENTATION OF THE PROVISIONS. The Public Ministry is responsible for faithfully implementing these provisions, understanding that they refer to children and adolescents, parents or responsible claimants, domiciled in the country, and to parents, without distinction of nationality or domicile, provided that they reside accidentally or permanently in the country. Paragraph.- Judgments regarding maintenance are enforceable ten (10) days after notification.» Art. 196.- FAILURE TO COMPLY WITH MAINTENANCE OBLIGATIONS. The father or mother who fails to fulfill maintenance obligations or refuses to do so and persists in their refusal after being required to do so, will suffer the penalty of two (2) years of suspended correctional imprisonment. Art. 197.- (Amended by Law No. 52-07). ENFORCEMENT FORCE. Divorce judgments that establish alimony payments will have the same force as those issued by justices of the peace or children and adolescents, in their respective jurisdictions, on account of an express claim for maintenance. Paragraph.- In case of non-compliance with the alimony obligation established in the divorce decree, the interested party shall empower the competent justice of the peace to pronounce the criminal sentence in the terms established in article 196 of this Code. The part of the divorce decree relating to the obligation to provide maintenance shall be deemed enforceable notwithstanding any appeal.» Art. 198.- (Amended by Law No. 52-07). ENFORCEMENT OF JUDGMENTS ABROAD. The Public Prosecutor's Office will carry out the pertinent procedures, or will do so at the request of a party, before foreign agencies for the protection of children or adolescents, through the State Secretariat for Foreign Affairs, in order to achieve the execution of the sentences issued by our courts.» TITLE VII: GUARDIANSHIP, FAMILY COUNCIL AND APPROVAL Art. 199.- COMPOSITION. Guardianship and the formation of the Family Council are governed by the rules established in the Civil Code, in these matters. Paragraph.- The surviving father or mother, in his or her capacity as legal administrator of children and adolescents, shall represent his or her minor children in the management of their rights, except for real estate transactions, for which he or she needs the authorization of the Family Council, observing the conditions provided for in the Civil Code. Art. 200.- COMPETITION. The Children's and Adolescents' Court has exclusive competence to hold Family Council meetings in all cases where compliance with this formality is necessary, and must observe for such purposes the formalities provided for in the Civil Code and its regulations. TITLE VIII: SPECIAL PROCEDURES CHAPTER I: ASSETS OF CHILDREN AND ADOLESCENTS THREATENED BY THE PERSON WHO ADMINISTERS THEM Art. 201.- ADMINISTRATION OF ASSETS OF CHILDREN AND ADOLESCENTS. When the person who has the administration of the assets of a child or adolescent, in their capacity as mother, father, guardian or curator, endangers the economic interests placed under their care, the representative of the Public Ministry for Children and Adolescents or any person who has knowledge of this situation, must promote, for the benefit of the child or adolescent, the judicial process or processes aimed at depriving them of the administration of the assets. Paragraph.- If the lawsuit is filed by the authorities or persons indicated against those who hold the authority of the father and the mother, the authorization required by the Civil Code regarding the administration of the property of the child and adolescent will not be necessary. Art. 202.- PROVISIONAL SUSPENSION. The representative of the Public Ministry for Children and Adolescents or an interested party may request the Judge of Children and Adolescents to provisionally suspend, for the duration of the proceedings, the powers of disposal and administration of the assets of the child and adolescent and to appoint an administrator of said assets in accordance with the terms established by law. Art. 203.- DISPUTES REGARDING THE ADMINISTRATION OF ASSETS. When there are disputes between a father and a mother or their representative, regarding the administration of the assets of a child or adolescent, with the consequent danger to that patrimony, the representative of the Public Ministry for Children and Adolescents may summon them to a hearing in which each one will explain their reasons. If no agreement is reached, the representative of the Public Ministry for Children and Adolescents, or any of the parties, will empower the Court for Children and Adolescents to resolve the controversy, in accordance with the best interests of the child or adolescent. CHAPTER II: AUTHORIZATION TO TRAVEL Art. 204.- MANDATORY ACCOMPANIMENT. No child or adolescent may travel outside the country unless accompanied by their father, mother or guardian. When traveling with people who are not your father, mother or guardian, it will be necessary to present an authorization duly legalized by a Notary Public. In the absence of the father or mother, the person who has custody will present a certificate from the Children's Court, stating the same. Paragraph.- If one of the parents is going to leave the country with one of their sons or daughters, they may not do so without the written consent of the other. Art. 205.- COMPETENCE OF ATTRIBUTION. The judges of Children and Adolescents, or failing that, the judges of first instance with powers of children and adolescents, will be competent to grant permissions to children and adolescents to leave the country when there is disagreement in this regard between their respective parents. CHAPTER III: PRESCRIPTIONS Art. 206.- CLAIM FOR NULLITY. The claim for annulment of the adoption prescribes five (5) years after the transcription of the adoption sentence. For the adopted child, this period begins from the date of their reaching the age of majority. Art. 207.- STATUTE OF LIMITATIONS FOR CLAIMS FOR ALIMONY. Actions relating to alimony are subject to prescription when the alimony recipient reaches the age of majority, by emancipation, adoption or death, except for: a) The provisions of Article 171, paragraph I; b) When the claim has been filed before the occurrence of the cause of prescription; c) For unpaid amounts that have been established by judgments or written agreements before the occurrence of the cause of prescription.

BOOK THREE: ON THE JURISDICTION OF CHILDREN AND ADOLESCENTS TITLE I: GENERAL PROVISIONS Art. 208.- COMPOSITION. The Jurisdiction of Children and Adolescents is composed of the Children's and Adolescents' Courts, the Children's and Adolescents' Courts of Appeal, the Supreme Court of Justice, and the Sentence Enforcement Courts. Art. 209.- JURISDICTION OF CHILDREN AND ADOLESCENTS. In each province, in the capital municipality, at least one Children's and Adolescents' Court shall be established. Paragraph I.- The Supreme Court of Justice shall decide when each Children's and Adolescents' Court shall begin operating, taking into account the needs of each Judicial District. Paragraph II.—Until the Children's and Adolescents' Courts and the Children's and Adolescents' Courts of Appeal are established in each District and in each Judicial Department, the following shall have jurisdiction over matters within their competence: a) At first instance: The criminal chamber and the civil chamber of the Court of First Instance of ordinary law, with jurisdiction over children and adolescents; and b) At second instance: The criminal chamber and the civil chamber of the Court of Appeal of ordinary law, with jurisdiction over children and adolescents. These jurisdictions shall be governed, in these cases, by the principles, procedures, and rules established in this Code. Art. 210.—COMPOSITION. The Children's and Adolescents' Courts shall have jurisdiction over criminal proceedings in family and protection matters concerning children and adolescents, and exceptionally over any other matter assigned to them. They will consist of a civil chamber and a criminal chamber, which will operate independently of each other within their respective jurisdictions. Each chamber will be composed of:

a) The Judge of Children and Adolescents;

b) The secretary;

c) The bailiff.

Paragraph I. The Supreme Court of Justice shall decide when each civil and criminal chamber of the Children's and Adolescents' Court will begin operations, taking into account the needs of each Judicial District. Paragraph II. The Prosecutor for Children and Adolescents shall represent the Public Prosecutor's Office in the criminal chamber and in all civil matters where their opinion or participation is required. Each Children's and Adolescents' Court shall have a multidisciplinary team, as specified below. Paragraph III. To create an environment that facilitates communication with the children and adolescents subject to this jurisdiction, neither the judges, nor the Public Prosecutor's Office, nor the lawyers shall wear gowns and caps during hearings. Art. 211. THE CIVIL CHAMBER OF THE CHILDREN'S AND ADOLESCENTS' COURT. The civil chamber of the Children's and Adolescents' Court has jurisdiction to hear and decide:

a) Lawsuits concerning the establishment and denial of parentage of children and related actions. The

The right to claim parentage does not expire for children. Mothers may exercise this right during their children's minority; b) Lawsuits for the rectification of civil status records at the request of an interested party or ordered by a competent body concerning children and adolescents; c) Regulation and rectification of late birth registrations of children and adolescents; d) Matters related to the issuance of birth certificates for children and adolescents whose parents have disappeared or are unknown, ordered by a competent body; e) Matters related to parental authority, and its temporary suspension or termination; f) The emancipation of adolescents; g) The authorization or consent to marriage of adolescents; h) Proceedings regarding the adoption of children and adolescents and their homologation, as well as matters related to the revocation of consent, its challenge, or its annulment; i) Lawsuits for guardianship, family placement, and regulation of visitation rights for children and adolescents; j) The homologation of judgments issued by foreign courts in matters of parentage, custody, visitation rights, alimony, adoption and other matters of family law; k) The review, control and supervision of compliance or non-compliance with the special protection measures provided for in this Code;

l) Regarding the violation of protection measures contained in this Code; m) Order precautionary and preventive measures provisionally, by means of an order, in relation to the request of the parents, guardians or responsible parties and of the representatives of the Public Ministry of Children and Adolescents; n) Convene, know and form the Family Council; designation and/or removal of guardians and pro-guardians for the administration and protection of the patrimony of a child and adolescent. It will expressly grant authorization to guardians to carry out acts of disposition and conservation; ñ) Declaration of the state of abandonment of children and adolescents for the purposes of this Code; o) Promote and approve conciliation agreements on family assistance for children and adolescents; p) Authorization for children and adolescents to travel abroad in the company of their father or mother, adoptive parents or third parties; q) Approve the act of designation of the substitute family and any decision that may be presented in this regard; r) Actions in claim or reparation of damages and losses derived from actions of children under thirteen (13) years of age, or when being over thirteen (13) years of age, it only compromises their civil responsibility or that of their parents or guardians; s) As well as any other matter that is expressly attributed to it. Paragraph.- The territorial jurisdiction of the civil court shall be governed by the rules governing this matter in the Code of Civil Procedure. Art. 212.- SEIZURE. Regardless of the procedures established in specific matters, the empowerment of the civil chamber will be done through a reasoned request before the Court of Children and Adolescents or through a declaration of an interested party in the court secretariat. Art. 213.- COMPETENCE BASED ON THE PERSON. The competent court for children and adolescents in civil matters will be that of the Judicial District where the child or adolescent has their domicile. Paragraph.- The legal domicile of a child or adolescent is that of the person who holds custody, whether by mandate of law or by judicial decision. Art. 214.- PROVISIONAL NATURE OF JUDGMENTS. Judgments in civil matters will have a provisional character, except for judgments of recognition or relating to civil status. Art. 215.- THE CRIMINAL CHAMBER OF THE COURT FOR CHILDREN AND ADOLESCENTS. The criminal court shall have jurisdiction to hear cases arising from offenses committed by adolescents, in accordance with the procedures and powers established in this Code. It will also be responsible for any other matter expressly assigned to it in this Code. Paragraph.- The territorial jurisdiction of the criminal court will be determined by the place where the infraction occurred. The rules contained in articles 60 to 68 of Law 76-02, of July 19, 2002, which establishes the Criminal Procedure Code, relating to jurisdiction and its effects, shall govern in the criminal justice of the adolescent person. Art. 216.- THE COURT FOR CHILDREN AND ADOLESCENTS. There will be a Children's Court in each Judicial Department, made up of at least three (3) judges. Paragraph.- The entry into force of each Court will be in accordance with the criterion established in paragraph I of article 209 of this Code. Art. 217.- COMPETENCIES OF THE COURT FOR CHILDREN AND ADOLESCENTS. The Court of Appeals for Children and Adolescents is competent to hear: a) Appeals against decisions of the civil and criminal chambers of the Court of First Instance for Children and Adolescents; b) Incidents that arise during the proceedings in the Courts for Children and Adolescents, in the cases and in the manner indicated; c) Complaints of procedural delay or denial of justice by the Courts for Children and Adolescents; d) Approval of the Family Council; e) Challenges or disqualifications of the judges of the Court for Children and Adolescents; f) Appeals against decisions of the Court of Execution of Sentences; g) As well as any other power or competence assigned by this Code and special laws. Art. 218.- THE SUPREME COURT OF JUSTICE. In matters of Specialized Justice for Children and Adolescents, the Supreme Court of Justice is competent to hear:

1. Regarding the appeal in cassation;
2. Regarding the review process;
3. Regarding the procedure relating to conflicts of jurisdiction between Courts of Appeal for Children and Adolescents, between judges or Courts of Children and Adolescents of different Judicial Departments;
4. Complaints regarding procedural delays or denial of justice against the Courts of Appeal for Children and Adolescents;
5. As well as any other power assigned in this Code.

Article 219. - JUVENILE SENTENCE ENFORCEMENT COURTS. There shall be at least one Juvenile Sentence Enforcement Court in each Judicial Department. Its jurisdiction includes overseeing the execution of final judgments and all matters arising from the execution of custodial sentences and any other sanctions or measures ordered against the juvenile. Article 220. - JUDICIAL OFFICE. The provisions relating to the structure and operation of the judicial office, contained in Articles 77 et seq. of the Code of Criminal Procedure, are applicable to this matter, insofar as they pertain to the jurisdictions of children and adolescents. TITLE II:

OF THE CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEM FOR ADOLESCENTS

CHAPTER I: GENERAL PROVISIONS Art. 221.- DEFINITION. Juvenile criminal justice seeks to determine both the commission of the offense and the criminal responsibility of the adolescent for punishable acts that violate current criminal law, guaranteeing compliance with due process of law. Art. 222.- OBJECTIVE. Once criminal responsibility has been established, the objective of juvenile criminal justice is to apply the corresponding socio-educational measure or sanction and to promote the education, comprehensive care, and reintegration of the adolescent into the family and society. Art. 223.- PRINCIPLE OF AGE GROUPS. For the purposes of applying precautionary measures and sanctions, juvenile criminal justice will differentiate the following age scale:

1. From 13 to 15 years old, inclusive;
2. From age 16 until reaching the age of majority.

Paragraph.- Children under thirteen (13) years of age are not criminally responsible in any case, therefore they cannot be detained, deprived of their liberty, or sanctioned by any authority. Art. 224.- PRESUMPTION OF MINORITY. When a person claims to be a minor and does not possess a birth certificate, specialized tests must be carried out to accurately establish their age. Paragraph.- In any case, the person will be presumed to be a minor until proven otherwise. The competent court to decide on this matter will always be the court for children and adolescents. Art. 225.- SCOPE OF APPLICATION OF CRIMINAL LAW OVER TIME. All persons who are adolescents at the time of committing the criminal offense, that is, from the age of thirteen until the day they turn 18, inclusive, will be subject to the juvenile criminal justice system. The age is considered to be reached the day after the date of birth. The above is without prejudice to the fact that he may reach the age of majority during the course of the process. Art. 226.- PROHIBITION OF EXTRADITION OF ADOLESCENTS. The extradition of adolescents is prohibited when they have committed an offense under the criminal law of another country and are requested for extradition. However, they may be brought before the Children and Adolescents Jurisdiction of the Dominican Republic, once it has been empowered by the requesting State. For such purposes, the rules established in Dominican criminal procedure legislation and this Code shall apply. Art. 227.- INTERPRETATION AND APPLICATION. The principles and rules contained in this Code are mandatory for all children and adolescents living in the territory of the Republic, and any general principle or rule contained in the Constitution, international treaties ratified by the Dominican Republic, and criminal procedural or substantive legislation that protects the fundamental rights and freedoms of the human person must also be applied. CHAPTER II: PROCEDURAL GUARANTEES Art. 228.- PRINCIPLE OF SPECIALIZED JUSTICE. The administration of criminal justice for adolescents, both in the process and in the execution, will be in charge of specialized bodies in matters concerning children and adolescents. Art. 229.- PRINCIPLE OF RESPECT FOR THE SPECIAL PROCEDURE. To determine the criminal responsibility of an adolescent and the application of the corresponding sanction, the procedure provided for in this Code must be followed, with strict observance of the guarantees, powers and rights provided for in the Constitution, international treaties and current criminal procedural legislation. Art. 230.- PRINCIPLE OF LEGALITY AND HARM. No adolescent may be subjected to the criminal justice regulated in this Code for an act that at the time of its occurrence is not previously defined as an offense in criminal legislation. Nor can it be subject to sanction if its conduct is justified or does not harm a protected legal interest. A person found criminally responsible for committing an offense may only be subject to the sanctions provided for in this Code. Art. 231.- PRINCIPLE OF CONFIDENTIALITY. Adolescents have the right to have their privacy and that of their family respected; information relating to acts committed by them is confidential. Consequently, no data that, directly or indirectly, reveals their identity can be published. Art. 232.- PRINCIPLE OF CONTRADICTORY PROCESS. The limitations inherent in the publicity of the process in the specialized justice system for children and adolescents will not be an obstacle to respecting the principle of adversarial proceedings; to this effect, the parties will have all the information and documentation related to the process, present their arguments, and exercise the resources and actions contemplated in this Code. Art. 233.- PRINCIPLE OF PARTICIPATION. From the beginning of the investigation, during the trial and during the execution of the sanction, adolescents will have the right to be heard, to participate in all proceedings, to provide and request the taking of evidence and witnesses. Art. 234.- PRINCIPLE OF DEPRIVATION OF LIBERTY IN A SPECIALIZED CENTER. In the event that the deprivation of liberty of an adolescent person is warranted, whether provisionally or as a result of a final sentence, this person has the right to be sent only to a specialized center according to their sex, age and legal status. Art. 235.- APPLICATION OF PRINCIPLES OF THE CRIMINAL PROCEDURE CODE. Respecting the nature of specialized justice, the principles contained in articles 1 to 28 of Law 76-02, of July 19, 2002, which establishes the Criminal Procedure Code, will be applicable at all times and in all jurisdictions, and insofar as they are compatible. CHAPTER III: ON ACTIONS IN THE CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEM FOR ADOLESCENTS SECTION I: ON CRIMINAL ACTION Art. 236.- ON THE CRIMINAL ACTION OF THE ADOLESCENT PERSON. The criminal action of the adolescent person will be public or at private request. When criminal action is public, in accordance with this Code, it will be the responsibility of the Public Ministry for Children and Adolescents to initiate the investigation ex officio or by complaint or by accusation; without prejudice to the participation that this Code grants to the victim and to citizens. Art. 237.- PUBLIC ACTION AT THE REQUEST OF A PRIVATE PARTY. Public action at private request is exercised with the accusation of the victim or their legal representative before the Public Ministry of Child, Girl and Adolescent, who is only authorized to exercise it with the presentation of the complaint and while it remains. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Public Prosecutor's Office for Children and Adolescents must carry out all the necessary acts to preserve the evidence, provided that they do not affect the protection of the victim's interests. The following punishable acts will depend on the prior filing of a complaint: ñ) Any other crimes that the law determines are private actions or at private request. Art. 238.- RIGHT TO FILE A COMPLAINT OR COMPLAINT. Anyone who has information or is a victim of a crime committed by an adolescent may report it to the Public Prosecutor's Office for Children and Adolescents, who will be empowered to initiate the investigation, except as stated above for cases that require the prior presentation of a private request. Art. 239.- CAUSES OF EXTINCTION OF CRIMINAL ACTION. The criminal action will be extinguished for the reasons listed in article 44 of the Criminal Procedure Code, insofar as they are applicable to this specialized justice. Art. 240.- STATUTE OF LIMITATIONS FOR CRIMINAL PROSECUTION. The criminal action will expire upon the expiration of a period equal to the maximum penalty in offenses sanctioned with prison sentences, without in any case this period being able to exceed five (5) years, nor be less than three (3), and six (6) months for offenses of public action at private request and contraventions. These terms will be counted from the day on which the violation of the criminal law was committed. Paragraph.- The statute of limitations is interrupted or suspended for the same specific reasons established in Articles 47 and 48 of the Criminal Procedure Code, in the cases where they are applicable. Art. 241.- STATUTE OF LIMITATIONS FOR SANCTIONS. The sanctions ordered definitively will expire in a term equal to the term ordered to comply with them. This period will begin to run from the date on which the final judgment in question is issued, or from the date on which it is verified that the non-compliance with the sanction began, and the period that has been served must be reduced. SECTION II: ON CIVIL ACTION Art. 242.- OF THE CIVIL ACTION. When a punishable act caused by an unemancipated adolescent, whether as the perpetrator or an accomplice, produces damages, it will only compromise the civil liability of his or her parents or guardians, unless the child or adolescent has his or her own assets. Art. 243.- ACCESSORY CHARACTER. In the criminal proceedings of the adolescent, the civil action for the reparation of damages may be exercised accessory to the criminal action before the jurisdiction of children and adolescents, while the criminal prosecution is pending. Once the proceedings have been dismissed or provisionally suspended in accordance with the provisions of this Code, the exercise of the civil action shall be suspended until the criminal prosecution continues. Paragraph.- When the process is definitively suspended, in the criminal aspect, the civil action may be exercised before the civil jurisdiction of children and adolescents. Art. 244.- ALTERNATIVE EXERCISE. In criminal proceedings against the adolescent, civil action may be exercised in accordance with the provisions of Articles 50 et seq. of the Criminal Procedure Code, insofar as they are applicable. SECTION III:

WAYS TO TERMINATE THE PROCESS EARLY

Art. 245.- FORMS OF EARLY TERMINATION OF THE PROCEEDINGS. The criminal proceedings of the adolescent may be terminated early by applying:

a) From the principle of opportunity of public action;

b) Reconciliation; and

c) The conditional suspension of the proceedings. The Public Prosecutor's Office for Children and Adolescents may terminate the criminal process early in accordance with the criteria, procedures, rules and effects established in articles 34 to 43 of the Criminal Procedure Code and in the infractions indicated therein. CHAPTER IV: OF THE PROCEDURAL SUBJECTS SECTION I: OF THE ADOLESCENT PERSON Art. 246.- OF THE ACCUSED ADOLESCENT PERSON. The adolescent person who is accused of committing or participating in an infraction of the criminal law will be considered charged. From the moment of their arrest, if applicable, or from the beginning of the investigation, they shall have the right to: a) Know the reason for the arrest, the authority that ordered it, and request the immediate presence of their parents, guardians, or representatives; b) Propose and request the taking of evidence; c) Be informed specifically and clearly of the unlawful acts with which they are charged, including those that are relevant to the legal classification; d) File an appeal once the sentence imposing the sanction to be applied is duly justified, without prejudice to the other rights recognized in this Code; e) Be assisted by a legal representative, and no statement may be taken from them without the assistance of such a representative, under penalty of nullity; f) Meet with their legal representative in strict confidentiality; g) Know the content of the investigation; h) Not be subjected to torture or cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment, nor to methods or techniques that induce or alter their free will, their conscious state, or violate their dignity; i) To establish effective communication, by telephone or any other means, immediately upon being detained, with their family, their lawyer, or the person they wish to inform about their detention or deprivation of liberty; j) To be brought before the judge or the Public Prosecutor without delay and always within the time limits established by this Code; k) Never to be presented to the media, nor have their name, address, parents' names, or any other characteristic that allows their public identification disclosed by them; l) Not to be taken or arrested in the community in a manner that harms their dignity or exposes them to danger; m) The preceding enumeration of rights is not exhaustive and is therefore complemented by the provisions on this matter contained in the Constitution, international treaties, the Code of Criminal Procedure, and other laws. Paragraph I.- Acts carried out in violation of these rights and those that are a consequence thereof are null and void. Paragraph II.- The judge, the representative of the Public Ministry, the official or the police officer or agent who violates or allows the violation of any of these rights is personally responsible and will be sanctioned in accordance with the provisions of this Code. Art. 247.- DUTY OF IDENTIFICATION. The adolescent person has the duty to provide correct data that allows their personal identification. Art. 248.- RIGHT TO REFRAIN FROM TESTING. Adolescents have the right to refrain from testifying and to refrain from self-incrimination. If he agrees to make a statement, he must do so in the presence of his lawyer. Under no circumstances will he be required to promise or swear to tell the truth, nor will coercion or threats be used. The use of any means to make him testify against himself, or against another person, is prohibited, nor may he be charged with clearly improper offenses for the purpose of obtaining a confession. Violation of this rule entails absolute nullity and the corresponding administrative or criminal liability for the official. Art. 249.- REBELLION. Adolescents who, without serious and legitimate impediment, fail to appear in response to a court summons, escape from the establishment or place where they are detained, or leave without informing those responsible of the place assigned to their residence, will be declared rebels. Once the escape has been verified, the person will be declared in rebellion and a summons will be issued. If this is not complied with or cannot be carried out, the escort or arrest of the rebellious adolescent will be ordered. Art. 250.- PARENTS OR LEGAL GUARDIANS OF THE ACCUSED ADOLESCENT. Parents, guardians or those responsible for the adolescent may intervene in the procedure as assistants or qualified informants who complement the psychosocial study of the adolescent or as informants of the investigated fact. Art. 251.- OF THE AGGRIEVED PERSON. The aggrieved person or victim may participate in the process, formulate the corresponding appeals when he or she deems it necessary for the defense of his or her interests; he or she may be represented by a lawyer, constituted as a civil party, or present personally. Paragraph.- When the aggrieved person is a child or adolescent and he or his parents or guardians lack the economic resources to be represented by a lawyer and become a civil party, the State will provide him or her with one, through the Public Defense Program. The Public Prosecutor's Office for Children and Adolescents will be responsible for communicating this right to the aggrieved party as soon as it comes into contact with them. Art. 252.- OF THE AGGRIEVED PERSON IN CRIMES OF PRIOR PRIVATE INSTANCE. If a person considers themselves aggrieved by a crime committed by an adolescent, which requires the prior filing of a private complaint, they may file a complaint, directly or through their legal representative, with the Public Prosecutor's Office for Children and Adolescents. All this without prejudice to the right to resort to the civil route for children and adolescents, to request compensation for damages. SECTION II: ON TECHNICAL DEFENSE Art. 253.- OF THE TECHNICAL DEFENSE. From the beginning of the investigation and throughout the entire process, the adolescent must be assisted by defenders and no statement may be taken from him without their assistance. The accused person or any of his parents, guardians or responsible parties may appoint a private defender. If they lack financial resources, the State, through the National Office of Judicial Defense, belonging to the Judicial Branch, will provide a free technical defender, who will be a suitable lawyer with experience in the procedure and criminal legislation of the adolescent person. For this purpose, a department of public defenders specializing in the matter will be formed. Paragraph.- There will be at least three (3) public defenders for children and adolescents in each Judicial Department. The National Office of Public Defense will determine the distribution of defenders throughout the national territory, according to the needs. Art. 254.- ON THE INTERVENTION OF THE TECHNICAL DEFENSE. The intervention of the legal defense begins from the opening of the investigation and, in particular, from the moment the adolescent is detained, until the criminal process ends or, if there is a sanction, until the moment it has been fulfilled. Art. 255.- FUNCTIONS OF TECHNICAL DEFENSE. To fulfill his duties, the technical defender has the following obligations: a) To represent, advise and defend free of charge the interests of the adolescent person who faces an investigation or a criminal process and who lacks the means to pay for the professional services of a private lawyer. Technical assistance will be provided from the investigation stage through the execution of the sanction, including promoting the necessary resources to guarantee their rights; b) Periodically inform the adolescent and their family, guardian, or responsible party about the developments in the criminal proceedings; c) Maintain regular communication with their clients for the duration of the proceedings and the imposed sanction; d) Report to the competent authorities any abuse or violation of rights committed against the adolescent they represent and initiate the corresponding actions; e) Appeal, when appropriate, the sentences issued by judges and the actions of the Public Prosecutor's Office for Children and Adolescents that restrict the freedom or undermine the rights and interests of the represented adolescent; f) Request from the judge, during the execution of the sanction, the necessary corrective measures when the rights of the sanctioned adolescent are unduly restricted beyond what is provided for in the sentence; g) Offer free legal advice to any adolescent who requests it and to other persons seeking guidance, in relation to punishable acts in which adolescents are involved;

h) Visit, at least once a month, the represented adolescent person who is deprived of liberty; i) Submit monthly reports to their immediate superior on the visits and, in general, on the cases under their responsibility; j) Promote, in the processes, the early forms of termination and the alternative sanctions contemplated in this Code; k) Observe the provisions that allow guaranteeing the rights of the accused adolescent person. SECTION III: OF THE PUBLIC MINISTRY FOR CHILDREN AND ADOLESCENTS Art. 256.- OF THE PUBLIC MINISTRY FOR CHILDREN AND ADOLESCENTS. The public action to prosecute and investigate the infraction will be exercised by the members of the Public Ministry of Children and Adolescents, specialized before the jurisdiction of children and adolescents, who will have exclusive power to promote and exercise, ex officio, or at the request of a party, all the necessary actions before these courts for the application of this Code. Art. 257.- ORGANIZATION OF THE PUBLIC MINISTRY FOR CHILDREN AND ADOLESCENTS. The Public Ministry for Children and Adolescents will be represented exclusively by the Attorneys General of the Courts of Appeal for Children and Adolescents in each Judicial Department; and by the Prosecutors before the Courts for Children and Adolescents. At a minimum, there will be one assistant to the Prosecutor for Children and Adolescents and one assistant to the Attorney General of the Court specialized in each Judicial District and in each Judicial Department, respectively. The Attorney General of the Republic will have, at least, one assistant specialized in the justice of children and adolescents to attend to matters within his competence in this area. Art. 258.- FUNCTIONS OF THE PUBLIC MINISTRY FOR CHILDREN AND ADOLESCENTS. In the criminal jurisdiction for children and adolescents, the Public Prosecutor's Office for Children and Adolescents shall have the following functions: a) To ensure compliance with this Code; b) To initiate criminal proceedings; c) To receive complaints or reports regarding criminal acts; d) To conduct and direct investigations of violations of current criminal law; e) To request expert examinations, participate in the collection of evidence, and provide evidence to support its claims; f) To request the performance of a psychosocial study, in the cases prescribed by this Code; g) To request, when appropriate, the cessation, modification, or substitution of the precautionary measures ordered or the criminal sanctions imposed on the adolescent during the execution and enforcement stage; h) To file legal appeals; i) To direct the work of the Specialized Police and ensure that it fulfills the functions established in this Code, respecting the fundamental rights and freedoms of the adolescent in conflict with the criminal law; j) Promote alternative measures where appropriate and provide legal advice and guidance to the aggrieved person, before or during conciliation, and when requested by them; k) Report to the competent authorities and act against violations of this Code that harm the rights of children and adolescents; l) Facilitate communication between defense lawyers and detained adolescents; m) Other functions assigned to it by other laws that do not contradict this Code. SECTION IV: JUDICIAL POLICE OF THE ADOLESCENT PERSON Art. 259.- SPECIALIZED JUDICIAL POLICE. The Judicial Police for Children and Adolescents is created as a support department for the juvenile criminal justice system. This is a technical body, specialized in the investigation and prosecution of criminal acts that have presumably been committed by adolescents and will act as an auxiliary to the Public Ministry of Children and Adolescents. Art. 260.- CONDITIONS AND REQUIREMENTS OF THE SPECIALIZED JUDICIAL POLICE. The staff of this specialized department will be of both sexes and will be trained to work with adolescents and to respect human rights. At the time of arrest, they must inform the detained adolescent about their rights, and immediately place them at the disposal of the corresponding Public Prosecutor's Office for Children and Adolescents. It will operate in all National Police detachments in order to fulfill the services assigned to them by this Code. Art. 261.- POWERS OF THE SPECIALIZED JUDICIAL POLICE DEPARTMENT. The Department of the Specialized Judicial Police for Children and Adolescents will assist the Public Prosecutor's Office for Children and Adolescents in the discovery and scientific verification of crimes and their alleged perpetrators. Likewise, it will support the Public Prosecutor's Office for Children and Adolescents in the summoning or apprehension of adolescent persons accused of the reported acts. Under no circumstances may an adolescent be held incommunicado. In the event of the arrest of a child or adolescent in flagrante delicto, the case will be referred to the Public Ministry for Children and Adolescents no later than the first twelve (12) hours of the arrest. Agents who fail to comply with these provisions will be subject to disciplinary action, without prejudice to any applicable criminal and civil liability. Art. 262.- DRIVING ADOLESCENT PERSONS. It is forbidden to detain teenagers and subject them to any kind of mistreatment. The use of handcuffs may be used exceptionally, when there is no other means of protecting their own integrity or to prevent them from causing harm to third parties. Art. 263.- ON THE FUNCTIONS OF THE SPECIALIZED POLICE. As an auxiliary to the Public Prosecutor's Office for Children and Adolescents, and under its direction and control, the Specialized Police for Children and Adolescents shall have the following functions: a) To support, under the direction of the Public Prosecutor's Office for Children and Adolescents, the investigation of crimes, identify the perpetrators and accomplices, and gather the evidence useful to substantiate the accusation; b) To always comply with the orders of the Public Prosecutor's Office for Children and Adolescents and those directed to it by the judges during the course of the proceedings; c) To transport, in accordance with the instructions of the judges of children and adolescents, the persons they indicate; d) To carry out the transport of adolescents to the different institutions where they must appear and the necessary procedures for their location, carrying out the transfers discreetly, to avoid publicity of any order; e) To guarantee at all times the fundamental rights of the adolescent in conflict with the criminal law; and f) Any other functions that may be assigned to it. Art. 264.- EXCLUSIVITY OF THE SPECIALIZED POLICE. Except in exceptional circumstances, and with the prior decision of the Public Ministry for Children and Adolescents, members of the Specialized Judicial Police who have been duly selected and trained may not be assigned to activities other than those indicated in this Code. Art. 265.- OF THE ORDINARY NATIONAL POLICE. If an adolescent is apprehended by the Ordinary National Police, within a period of no more than twelve (12) hours of their arrest, they must be placed at the disposal of the Public Ministry of Children and Adolescents. Agents who fail to comply with this deadline, as well as the other guarantees indicated, shall be subject to disciplinary action, without prejudice to the criminal and civil penalties established in Article 399 of this Code. SECTION V: OF THE MULTIDISCIPLINARY TEAM FOR COMPREHENSIVE CARE Art. 266.- OF THE MULTIDISCIPLINARY UNIT FOR INTEGRATED CARE. In each Judicial Department there will be, at least, a full-time multidisciplinary unit for specialized comprehensive care, made up of a technical team with a minimum of two professionals from the areas of: a) Social work, which must carry out the socio-family study of the adolescent subject of investigation, in order to know their family and community environment; b) Psychology, who will carry out a systemic diagnosis of the adolescent based on the investigated fact, and the skills, abilities and knowledge of the adolescent subject of investigation; c) Other related areas that allow having technical and objective elements to guarantee due process of law. They may also seek assistance from specialists in public or private institutions providing comprehensive care for children and adolescents, when necessary. Paragraph.- In the performance of their duties, these professionals must guarantee respect for the due process of the accused adolescent and their fundamental rights. Art. 267.- PSYCHOLOGICAL AND SOCIO-FAMILY STUDIES. The multidisciplinary unit will be responsible for carrying out, as ordered by the Children and Adolescents Court, psychological and socio-family studies, as will be specified later. Art. 268.- PURPOSE OF PSYCHOLOGICAL AND SOCIO-FAMILY STUDIES. The purpose of psychological and socio-family studies is to determine, through professionals in the fields of psychology and social work and related areas, the possible explanatory causes of the adolescent's behavior, in order to impose, where appropriate, the most suitable measure, but in no way may it be used to determine guilt. Paragraph.- Both the socio-family study and the psychological study will have a value equivalent to that of an expert opinion, and will be valued according to the rules of sound judgment. It may be requested that the specialists who signed the study appear at the trial stage. Art. 269.- AUXILIARY TECHNICAL PROFESSIONAL. The Children and Adolescents Jurisdiction may also be assisted by professionals in the fields of medicine, pedagogy, dentistry, radiology and others that it considers pertinent to obtain the necessary technical evidence to establish the real age, physical and mental health of the adolescent and other circumstances that, in the opinion of the judge or at the request of the interested parties, are useful to determine the truth, and ensure the procedural guarantees of the accused adolescent. Art. 270.- DESIGNATION OF THE PROFESSIONALS OF THE MULTIDISCIPLINARY UNIT. The staff that make up the Multidisciplinary Unit for comprehensive care will be designated by the National Council for Children and Adolescents (CONANI), an institution that will pay salaries, allowances, operating expenses, and logistical support, for which purpose it will specialize a budget item. It will also be responsible for the supervision, evaluation, and monitoring of this staff. Their appointment will be through a public competition. Art. 271.- ON THE LEGAL VALUE OF REPORTS. Both the Multidisciplinary Unit and the auxiliary technical professional must issue a technical report in which the adolescent person is comprehensively evaluated, with the respective recommendations. This report will be added to the court file and will be available to the parties involved in the proceedings. The reports submitted by these professionals will be considered as technical evidence. Art. 272.- DEADLINES FOR REPORTS. The evaluations ordered by the court to the Multidisciplinary Unit or the corresponding auxiliary professionals must be sent to the judge within a period of no more than fifteen (15) days, from the date on which the request is received in this regard. Art. 273.- OTHER EXPERTS. To contribute to the correct assessment of the evidence, an expert opinion may be ordered. This measure will be implemented in highly specialized areas, requiring experts in their fields who are impartial, adhere to professional ethics, and independent. Paragraph.- The experts will be subject to the same requirements contained in article 204 and following of the Criminal Procedure Code. Art. 274.- DESIGNATION. In the investigation phase, the Public Prosecutor's Office for Children and Adolescents may request expert reports, which must be subjected to adversarial debate to have the corresponding probative value. CHAPTER V: ON THE MEANS OF PROOF Art. 275.- MEANS OF PROOF. The provisions contained in articles 166 to 221 of the Criminal Procedure Code, relating to the means of proof, govern in the criminal justice of the adolescent person, provided that they do not contradict any provision contained in this Code, in which case the latter shall prevail. CHAPTER VI: ON THE CRIMINAL PROCEDURE OF THE ADOLESCENT PERSON SECTION I: GENERAL PROVISIONS Art. 276.- AUTHORIZATION OF DAYS. In juvenile criminal proceedings, deadlines are mandatory and non-working days and hours can be designated to hear the case. Art. 277.- LEGAL CLASSIFICATION. The classification of acts or violations of criminal law committed by adolescents will be determined by the descriptions of prohibited conduct established in the Penal Code and in current special laws. Art. 278.- INFRACTIONAL ACT. An act of infraction committed by an adolescent will be considered to be conduct classified as a crime, offense or contravention by criminal laws. Art. 279.- VERIFICATION OF AGE AND IDENTITY. The birth certificate issued by the corresponding Civil Registry Office is the valid instrument for proving the age of persons and, in the absence of this, other means of proof may be used. If necessary, the Children's and Adolescents' Court may order, at the request of an interested party, the procedures for physical identification, in which known personal data, fingerprints and distinguishing marks will be used. Identification may also be ordered through witnesses or other suitable means. Deficiencies, doubts or errors regarding the personal data of the adolescent will not alter the course of the procedure and errors may be corrected at any time, even during the execution stage of the sanctions. These procedures may be applied even against the will of the accused, respecting their fundamental rights. Under no circumstances may deprivation of liberty be ordered to verify the age of the accused adolescent. Art. 280.- PROVEN INCOMPETENCE AND REMISSION. If during the course of the proceedings it is found that the person accused of the criminal offense is of legal age at the time of the commission of the crime, the Court of Children and Adolescents will immediately declare itself incompetent due to the person, ordering the declination of the file and the referral to the Public Ministry of common law, so that it may take over the ordinary criminal jurisdiction. Art. 281.- VALIDITY OF THE ACTIONS. The actions that are referred due to lack of competence will be valid for both the criminal jurisdiction of the adolescent person and for the ordinary one, provided that they do not contravene the purposes of this Code, nor the fundamental rights of the adolescent person. Art. 282.- CONNECTION OF PROCESSES IN DIFFERENT JURISDICTIONS. When both adolescents and persons over eighteen years of age participate in the commission of a crime, the cases must be processed separately, each in the competent jurisdiction. However, in these cases, the different courts will be obliged to send each other copies of the relevant evidence and proceedings, duly certified by the secretary of the corresponding court. Paragraph.- Informative statements that minors under 18 years of age must provide in relation to criminal cases will take place exclusively before the Courts of Children and Adolescents, for which purpose the competent judge will issue a letter rogatory inserting his questions if he deems them pertinent. Furthermore, such statements can be obtained through closed-circuit television interviews or through the Gessel camera, that is, the projection of the image and voices of the child or adolescent, without entering into direct personal contact with the ordinary law court. The use of this technological means must comply with the regulations established by the Supreme Court of Justice. Children and adolescents will not be allowed to participate in or attend crime and delinquency reconstructions. In this matter, the principle of Specialized Justice, based on the best interests of the child and adolescent, prevails over the principle of immediacy of the process. Art. 283.- THE UNLOCATED ADOLESCENT PERSON. If the commission of the crime is attributed to an unlocated adolescent, clues and evidence will be gathered and, if appropriate, legal action will be initiated. Once the investigation stage has begun, the Public Prosecutor's Office for Children and Adolescents may continue with the other proceedings until this stage is concluded and order the location of the accused adolescent, in order to continue with the processing of the accusation. If it is possible to conclude the investigation, he will request the opening of the process and ask the judge to order the location of the accused adolescent. The process will remain suspended until the adolescent appears in person before the Judge of Children and Adolescents. Art. 284.- TERMS. The procedural time limits established in this Code shall be counted in working days, unless expressly stated otherwise. When the Code does not establish the term or its extension, the judge may set it according to the nature and importance of the activity in question. When dealing with adolescents deprived of liberty, the time limits will only be expressly non-extendable within the limits established in this Code. If the adolescent is at liberty, the time limits will be extendable, as established by this Code. Paragraph.- All time limits relating to the deprivation of liberty of the adolescent person will be calendar days. SECTION II: PRECAUTIONARY MEASURES Art. 285.- ORIGIN OF PRECAUTIONARY MEASURES. Precautionary measures may be applied at the duly substantiated request of the Public Prosecutor for Children and Adolescents, in order to guarantee the presence of the adolescent person in the investigation process up to the trial stage. The judge must assess the evidence submitted to him in reference to the commission of the criminal act and be in possession of sufficient rational indications to believe that there is a possibility that the adolescent person has participated in the act. Art. 286.- TYPES OF PRECAUTIONARY MEASURES. In cases where it is necessary to order a precautionary measure in accordance with the purposes defined in the previous article, the representative of the Public Prosecutor's Office for Children and Adolescents may request the judge to apply any of the following precautionary measures to the accused adolescent: a) Change of residence; b) Obligation of the adolescent to appear periodically before the court or the authority designated by it; c) Prohibition from leaving the country, the locality or territorial area established by the court without authorization; d) Prohibition from visiting and interacting with certain persons; e) House arrest; f) Placement under the custody of another person or specific institution; g) Provisional deprivation of liberty in an official center specialized for these purposes. These precautionary measures will be ordered for up to two months. Upon their expiration, they may be extended by the judge, only once, for an additional month, with the exception of provisional deprivation of liberty. The court must be kept duly informed regarding compliance with the precautionary measure. Violation or non-compliance with the ordered measure will result in the judge applying a more severe one. Art. 287.- STAYING AT HOME. When applying precautionary measures to an adolescent person who is accused of acts foreseen and punished by law, the judge may order their continued stay in their family home, except in cases of physical or moral danger, incapacity of their parents or their inability to give them adequate training. Art. 288.- DISABILITY OF PARENTS. For the purposes of applying the previous article, parents shall be considered unfit when: a) They are affected by a mental disability; b) They suffer from chronic alcoholism or are drug addicts; c) They fail to ensure the proper upbringing, personal care, and education of the child; d) They physically or psychologically abuse the child or adolescent; e) Other causes that, in the opinion of the judge or upon the recommendation of the multidisciplinary team, demonstrate an imminent violation of the rights of the child or adolescent, from the perspective of the best interests of the child. Given these circumstances, the judge may refer the case to the National Council for Children and Adolescents for the protection of the adolescent. Art. 289.- DUTY OF THE COMMUNITY. The judge is empowered to compel public and private institutions to enforce the precautionary measures imposed on adolescents, which imply a duty of the community. Art. 290.- PROVISIONAL DEPRIVATION OF LIBERTY AS A PRECAUTIONARY MEASURE. Provisional deprivation of liberty is a precautionary measure of an exceptional nature. It may only be ordered by reasoned judgment, and will be used if it is not possible to apply another less serious precautionary measure. Under no circumstances may it be ordered for the purpose of facilitating the performance of the psychosocial study or physical tests on the adolescent person to determine their age. Provisional deprivation of liberty may be ordered when there is sufficient evidence to reasonably support the claim that the adolescent is likely the perpetrator or accomplice in the commission of a criminal offense; and that, according to the classification of the facts, it is an offense that in common law is punishable by a sentence exceeding five years, provided that any of the following circumstances are also present:

a) There is a reasonable risk that the adolescent will evade justice;

b) There is a possibility of destruction or obstruction of the means of proof;

c) There is danger to the victim, the complainant, the plaintiff or the witness.

Paragraph I.- The Public Ministry for Children or Adolescents must request the precautionary measures depriving the adolescent of liberty referred to in this article, within twenty-four (24) hours of the arrest of the adolescent person. The Judge of Children and Adolescents, for his part, must issue, within the following 24 hours, the sentence by which he decides on the appropriateness or not of the precautionary measure, without prejudice to the fact that he may order other less serious ones. Paragraph II.- Provisional deprivation of liberty will be carried out in specialized centers, where adolescents must necessarily be separated from those who have been sanctioned by final sentence. Art. 291.- MAXIMUM TERM OF PROVISIONAL DEPRIVATION OF LIBERTY. The provisional deprivation of liberty, ordered by the judge during the investigation, will have a maximum duration of thirty (30) days and may be replaced by another less serious measure at any time, at the request of the parties. When the Public Prosecutor for Children and Adolescents believes that an extension is necessary, it must request it, explaining its reasons to the Judge of Children and Adolescents, who will assess the actions and particular circumstances of the case to establish the extension period, and in no case may this be longer than fifteen (15) days. Once the accusation has been filed within the investigation period, the Judge of Children and Adolescents in charge will have a maximum of fifteen (15) days to summon the parties, hold the preliminary hearing and issue a ruling. Paragraph I.- If the matter is sent to trial on the merits, and the deprivation of liberty has been maintained, the Judge of Children and Adolescents will have a maximum of thirty (30) days to hold the hearing on the merits, at the end of which he must produce a final decision of first instance. Paragraph II.- If the final decision of the first instance has been appealed by one of the parties, the Court of Appeal for Children and Adolescents, if it does not order another measure, may maintain the measure of deprivation of liberty for the time it needs to decide, which may not exceed, in any case, a maximum of thirty (30) days. Art. 292.- CONCEPT OF MAXIMUM PRIORITY. In order to make the provisional deprivation of liberty as brief as possible, the courts and investigative bodies should consider the effective processing of cases in which the provisional detention of an adolescent is used as a top priority. SECTION III: THE INVESTIGATION Art. 293.- START AND OBJECTIVE OF THE INVESTIGATION. The investigation will begin ex officio, by complaint or by a lawsuit filed with the Public Prosecutor's Office for Children and Adolescents. Once the complaint or lawsuit has been filed, an investigation must be initiated to determine the existence of the facts that violate criminal law, the identification of the accused person, the degree of participation, and the verification of the damage caused. Art. 294.- OF THE INVESTIGATING BODY. The Public Prosecutor's Office for Children and Adolescents will be the body in charge of conducting the investigation and formulating the accusation when there is merit to do so and must provide the evidence that demonstrates the responsibility of the accused adolescent. The judge of the Children's and Adolescents' Court of first instance will be in charge of controlling and supervising the legality of the functions of the prosecuting body during the investigation process. Art. 295.- COMPETENCE OF THE JUSTICE OF THE PEACE. In cases that do not allow delay and it is not possible to obtain the intervention of the Children's, Girls and Adolescents' Judge, the Public Ministry for Children and Adolescents may direct its request to the corresponding Justice of the Peace, based on the place where the action requiring the prior authorization of the judge is to be carried out. Art. 296.- ACTS IN FLAGRANCE. In cases of flagrant offenses, the authorities or persons making the arrest must immediately place the accused adolescent at the disposal of the Public Prosecutor for Children and Adolescents. The Public Prosecutor's Office for Children and Adolescents must, within twenty-four (24) hours, identify, take an investigative statement and, when legally appropriate, request the imposition of precautionary measures. For this purpose, and within this period, you must present the accused before the Judge of Children and Adolescents and request the imposition of any precautionary measure. If applicable, the Public Prosecutor for Children and Adolescents must file the formal accusation against the adolescent no later than ten (10) days later. Likewise, where appropriate, the Public Prosecutor's Office for Children and Adolescents will convene the parties for conciliation, following, in all applicable aspects, the procedure established in the Criminal Procedure Code. If a settlement agreement is not reached, the normal investigation process will continue. Art. 297.- INVESTIGATIVE STATEMENT OF THE ACCUSED ADOLESCENT PERSON. The purpose of this procedure will be to inform the adolescent of the facts attributed to him/her, and to advise him/her of his/her right to refrain from testifying. In no case shall he be required to promise or swear to tell the truth, nor shall coercion or threats be used to force him to testify against his will, nor shall charges be brought against him to obtain his confession. Consequently, if the adolescent consents to testify, they will do so voluntarily, and it will take place in the presence of their legal counsel. In addition, the adolescent may request the presence of their parents, guardians or caregivers. Failure to comply with this provision will render the act null and void, with the corresponding administrative and criminal liability for the responsible official, if applicable. Art. 298.- TERMINATION OF THE INVESTIGATION. The Public Ministry for Children and Adolescents, as specified in article 291 of this Code, must complete its investigation within thirty (30) days, counted from the moment the adolescent person is deprived of his liberty, if that is the case. The Public Prosecutor for Children and Adolescents may request the judge to extend the investigation period for a period not exceeding fifteen (15) days, in cases of complex investigation processing, and must communicate this request to the parties. At the conclusion of the investigation, the Public Prosecutor's Office for Children and Adolescents must choose one of the following alternatives: a) Request the holding of a preliminary hearing, in the manner provided in article 304, formulating the accusation and explaining the facts and the evidence that exists so that the Judge of Children and Adolescents can determine whether or not to open the trial on the merits; b) The dismissal of the process, by means of a reasoned opinion, when it considers that there is no basis to promote the accusation; c) The archiving of the investigation file; d) The provisional or definitive dismissal. Art. 299.- CONTENT OF THE ACCUSATION. The indictment filed by the representative of the Public Prosecutor's Office for Children and Adolescents must contain: a) All information that allows for the full identification of the accused adolescent, or if unknown, any identifying characteristics or information that may allow for their summons; b) The age and address of the accused adolescent, if this information is available, and if the adolescent contests their age, the documented evidence or medical reports supporting their claim must be attached; c) The information of their legal counsel; d) A clear, precise, and detailed account of the investigated facts, indicating the time and manner of execution, and the evidence evaluated during the investigation; e) The provisional legal classification of the investigated facts or a clear statement of the violated legal provisions; f) A clear and precise account of the circumstances that aggravate, mitigate, or modify the criminal responsibility of the accused adolescent; g) The type of participation attributed to the accused adolescent; h) Indication of the means of proof that you intend to present at trial. In the case of witnesses and experts, you must indicate their names and surnames, profession or specialties, their address and the points on which the statement will focus. Art. 300.- ALTERNATIVE OR SUBSIDIARY ACCUSATION. In the accusation, the public prosecutor or the plaintiff may indicate alternatively or subsidiarily the circumstances of the fact that allow the imputed behavior to be classified as a different offense, in order to enable its proper defense. Art. 301.- FILE. The Public Prosecutor's Office for Children and Adolescents may order the filing of the case file, by means of a reasoned opinion, when the grounds listed in article 281 of the Criminal Procedure Code, applicable in this specialized jurisdiction, are present. Art. 302.- DEFINITIVE DISMISSAL BEFORE TRIAL. The final dismissal must be made through a judgment that states the reasons and analyzes the evidence presented. The following are grounds for definitive dismissal: a) The reported act did not occur or was not committed by the accused adolescent; b) The lack of a necessary condition for imposing the sanction is evident; c) Despite the lack of certainty, there is no reasonable possibility of incorporating new elements of evidence and it is impossible to reasonably request the opening of the trial; d) The investigated act does not constitute a criminal offense or when it has been the subject of another process that ended with a final and definitive decision affecting the same adolescent; e) The criminal action has been extinguished in accordance with the grounds indicated in this Code. Paragraph.- The order of definitive dismissal immediately ceases all precautionary measures imposed on the accused adolescent. Art. 303.- PROVISIONAL DISMISSAL. When the evidence is insufficient to request the opening of the trial, provisional dismissal will be appropriate, by means of a reasoned order that specifically mentions the specific evidence that is expected to be incorporated. The provisional dismissal order immediately terminates all precautionary measures imposed on the accused adolescent. If new evidence allows the proceedings to continue, the judge, at the request of either party, will allow the investigation to proceed. If the reopening of the case is not requested ex officio within six months of the provisional dismissal being issued, the criminal action will be declared extinguished. Paragraph.- The provisional or definitive dismissal may be ordered by the Public Prosecutor for Children and Adolescents or requested from the Judge of Children and Adolescents, at the end of the investigation period, without the accusation being made. Art. 304.- RESOLUTION ON THE ADMISSIBILITY OF THE ACCUSATION. Once the Public Prosecutor for Children and Adolescents takes charge of the accusation to the Children's and Adolescents' Court, the judge will set the preliminary hearing, which must be held within the following ten days, and the Secretary of the Children's and Adolescents' Court must notify the parties within the first three (3) days of said period, so that they appear at the preliminary hearing and refer to the accusation and provide evidence for or against for the holding of the trial on the merits. After the preliminary hearing, the Judge of Children and Adolescents will issue a decision stating whether or not the accusation is warranted. If he rejects the accusation, he will issue a ruling that the trial on the merits is not admissible and will revoke all precautionary measures that may have been ordered. If the judge considers that the opening of the trial is not appropriate because there are formal errors in the indictment, he will return it to the representative of the public prosecutor so that, within the period of twenty-four (24) hours, he makes the pertinent corrections. In the event that the Judge of Children and Adolescents admits the accusation and the supporting evidence, in whole or in part, he shall order, by judgment issued at the same preliminary hearing, the opening of the trial on the merits. This judgment shall include, in addition to the reasons justifying the trial on the merits, the following: a) A ruling on the jurisdiction of the Children and Adolescents Court based on the person involved; b) Setting the date for the trial on the merits, which must be held within a period not exceeding thirty (30) days; c) A decision on whether to maintain, suspend, or modify any precautionary measures that have been ordered; d) An order for the psychological and socio-familial studies of the accused, the results of which must be submitted to the Children and Adolescents Court within fifteen (15) days of being ordered; e) An order to the Public Prosecutor's Office for Children and Adolescents to correct any formal errors in the presented accusation; f) Exclude from the accusation any manifestly unlawful evidence. SECTION IV: THE SUBSTANTIVE TRIAL Art. 305.- ON ORALITY, PRIVACY AND CONTRADICTORY OF THE HEARING. The hearing must be oral, private and adversarial, and its publicity limited to the part of the process, under penalty of nullity. Paragraph.- The accused adolescent, his technical defender, the parents or legal representatives, the representative of the Public Ministry of Children and Adolescents, the witnesses, experts or interpreters, if necessary, must be present at the hearing. The aggrieved person or their representative and other persons that the judge deems appropriate may also be present. Once the presence of the parties has been verified, the judge will declare the hearing open and explain to the adolescent the importance and meaning of the substantive hearing and will order the reading of the charges against him. The judge must ask the adolescent if they understand the charge against them. If he answers affirmatively, the debates will begin; if, on the contrary, he states that he does not understand the accusation, the content of the facts attributed to him will be explained again, and the hearing will continue. Art. 306.- NON-APPEARANCE OF THE COMPLAINANT. The failure of the plaintiff, duly summoned to the hearing, to appear without justified reasons, or their departure from the courtroom without the court's authorization, will not prevent the continuation of the process without their presence. Art. 307.- STATEMENT OF THE ACCUSED ADOLESCENT. Once the judge has verified that the adolescent understands the charges, and their identity has been verified, they will be informed that they may testify or abstain from doing so, without their silence implying a presumption of guilt. If the accused adolescent agrees to testify, after doing so, they may be questioned by the parties. The questions must be clear, precise, direct, and in no case should they be induced or misleading, and it must be ensured that the accused adolescent understands them. During the hearing, the accused adolescent always has the right to make any voluntary statements he or she deems appropriate, and the parties may ask him or her questions in order to clarify his or her statements. Art. 308.- EXTENSION OF THE ACCUSATION. If, during the course of the trial, the Public Prosecutor for Children and Adolescents or the plaintiff expands the accusation by including a new fact or a new circumstance that arose during the debate that modifies the legal classification, constitutes an aggravating factor or forms part of a continuous crime, the procedure will be followed, as applicable in this specialized jurisdiction, in accordance with the provisions of article 322 of the Criminal Procedure Code. Art. 309.- RECEIPT OF EVIDENCE. Once the statement of the accused has been received, if there is one, the Children's Court proceeds to receive the evidence presented by the Public Prosecutor for Children, Girls and Adolescents, by the complainant, by the civil party, by the third party civilly responsible and by the technical defense, in that order, unless the parties and the court agree to alter it. The evidence is received in the order chosen by each of the parties, as they have communicated to the court and the other parties in the preparation of the trial. Paragraph.- The provisions relating to the hearing of experts and witnesses and their questioning contained in Article 324 et seq. of the Criminal Procedure Code shall govern in this specialized jurisdiction, insofar as they are applicable. Art. 310.- OF THE CONTRADICTORY. The judge, after questioning the expert or witness about their personal identity and the circumstances necessary to assess their testimony, will grant the questioning to the party that proposed it and subsequently to the other parties who wish to question, in the order that he considers appropriate. Finally, the judge may question the expert or witness, only to clarify doubtful points about facts or circumstances that have been inquired about by the parties. Art. 311.- OF THE CONCLUSIONS. Once the evidence has been received, the judge will give the floor to the civil party, if there is one, to the Public Prosecutor for Children and Adolescents, and finally to the technical defender so that, in that order, they may issue their conclusions regarding the guilt or responsibility of the accused adolescent and refer to their claims, the type of sanction applicable and its duration. The parties will have the right to reply, which must be limited to refuting the adverse arguments presented in the conclusions. Art. 312.- DELIBERATION AND SENTENCE ON GUILT. After the hearing is concluded, the judge will deliberate, in a secret session, on the existence of the act or its atypicality, the authorship or participation of the accused adolescent, the existence or non-existence of causes excluding responsibility, the circumstances or seriousness of the act and the degree of responsibility. The sentence will be pronounced "In the name of the Republic." It is drafted and signed immediately after the deliberation. The sentence is read by the clerk in the presence of the defendant and the other parties present. When, due to the complexity of the matter, or the lateness of the hour, it is necessary to postpone the drafting of the sentence, only the operative part is read and the judge summarizes the grounds for his decision to the parties present. It also announces the day and time for the comprehensive reading, which is carried out within a maximum period of ten (10) business days following the reading of the device. The sentence is considered notified upon its complete reading. The parties receive a copy of the full judgment. The acquittal or sanctioning sentence will order, as appropriate, the precautionary measure, the release of the accused adolescent, or the cessation of the restrictions provisionally imposed, and will resolve the civil claims and the costs. The release will take effect directly in the courtroom, when that is the decision. Art. 313.- REQUIREMENTS OF THE SENTENCE. The final decision shall be called a judgment and shall be subject to the following formalities: a) The name and location of the court and the date on which the judgment is issued; b) The personal data of the accused adolescent and any other relevant identifying data; c) The reasoning and decision of the judge on each of the issues raised during the hearing, with express statement of the factual and legal grounds on which it is based; d) The precise determination of the facts that the judge considers proven or not proven; e) The applicable legal measures; f) The clear, precise and reasoned determination of the sanction imposed. The type of sanction, its duration and the place where it must be executed must be determined; g) When it comes to non-custodial sanctions, it must expressly establish, in case of non-compliance, the duration of the custodial sanction; h) The signature, seal and initials of the judge and the secretary of the court; i) And the other formalities that the judgments of common law carry, which are not contradictory to the provisions of this Code. Art. 314.- CONTROL OF THE DURATION OF THE INVESTIGATION AND THE PROCESS. The provisions and means organized in the Criminal Procedure Code in its articles 148 and following, for the control of the duration of the investigation and the process and its effects, are applicable in the justice of the adolescent person, with the difference that in this, the duration of the investigation may not be longer than six (6) months, extendable by the judge for three more months; and the duration of the process may not be longer than one year, extendable for six more months, provided that the accused is not deprived of his liberty, in which case the investigation and the process will be governed, in first and second instance, by the time limits established in article 291 of this Code. Likewise, the time limits set out in this Code must be strictly respected in cases where provisional detention has been ordered against the accused. SECTION V: ON RESOURCES Art. 315.- TYPES OF RESOURCES. The parties may appeal the judgments of the Children's, Girls' and Adolescents' Court only through the remedies of opposition, appeal, cassation and review. Sentences appealed by the accused adolescent may not be modified to his detriment. Paragraph I.- Criminal judgments are enforceable notwithstanding any appeal. Paragraph II.- The civil compensations that the criminal chamber of the Court of Children and Adolescents imposes as an accessory, will only be enforceable, notwithstanding any appeal, if at the request of the parties the judge orders it. Paragraph III.- The exercise of resources shall be governed by the principles contained in articles 393 to 410 of the Criminal Procedure Code, insofar as they are applicable in this specialized jurisdiction. Art. 316.- ON THE APPEAL OF OPPOSITION. The appeal is only admissible against decisions that resolve a procedural step or incident, so that the judge or court that issued them may re-examine the issue and issue the corresponding judgment, modifying, revoking or ratifying the challenged one. As regards the form, the appeal may be filed during or outside of the hearing and will be governed by the provisions of Articles 408 and 409 of the Criminal Procedure Code, insofar as they are applicable in this specialized jurisdiction. Art. 317.- APPEAL PROCEDURE. The following shall be appealable: a) The judgments of the preliminary hearing that decide that there is no basis for holding the substantive hearing, within the period of three days from the notification; b) The final judgments that end the process in the first instance. In these latter cases the period will be ten (10) days from the notification. Paragraph I.- The incidents that arise in the preliminary hearing as well as in the substantive hearing will be accumulated to be decided jointly, except for those relating to jurisdiction, which will be decided before knowing the merits. Paragraph II.- The judgment issued by the Judge of Children and Adolescents regarding jurisdiction may be appealed to the Court of Children and Adolescents, which, if it declares itself competent, will address the merits of the case. Art. 318.- RIGHT TO APPEAL. The appeal process is only admissible through the means and in the cases expressly established. Only those with a direct interest in the matter may appeal. In this sense, the following are considered interested parties: the Public Ministry for Children and Adolescents, the complainant, the aggrieved person constituted as a civil party or their legal representative, the accused adolescent person by themselves or through their technical defense, or their parents or guardians. Art. 319.- PROCESSING OF THE APPEAL. The appeal must be filed with the Children's and Adolescents' Court that ruled on the matter, either by declaration or in writing deposited in the Court's Secretariat. The court clerk must forward the appeal to the corresponding Children's and Adolescents' Court of Appeal within three days of receiving it. Within the first three days of receiving the file, the court will set the hearing date for the appeal, and the clerk will notify the parties of the hearing date by bailiff at the court's request. Failure to comply with the indicated deadlines, whether by the secretary of the Children's Court or by the secretary of the Children's Court, will result in disciplinary sanctions. Art. 320.- MOTIVATION AND APPEAL PROCEDURE. The appeal, its grounds and procedures, shall be governed by the provisions of the Criminal Procedure Code in articles 410 to 424, insofar as they are applicable in this specialized jurisdiction. Art. 321.- ON THE APPEAL IN CASSATION. The appeal in cassation is admissible in the cases and according to the procedure and formalities established in common law. The Supreme Court of Justice is the competent court to hear this appeal. Art. 322.- THE REVIEW APPEAL. The Supreme Court of Justice will be competent to hear, in a single instance, the appeal for review, which may never reform a sentence to the detriment of the situation of the sanctioned or convicted adolescent. It is appropriate for the following reasons: a) If, after the judgment declaring the responsibility of the adolescent, new facts or elements of evidence arise or are discovered which, alone or together with those already examined in the process, demonstrate that the punishable act did not occur, or that the accused adolescent did not commit it, or that said act falls under a more favorable law; b) If a subsequent law declares that the act previously considered punishable is not punishable, or when the law that served as the basis for the conviction has been declared null and void due to unconstitutionality; c) When the conviction comes from a court or tribunal of ordinary criminal jurisdiction and it is subsequently proven that at the time of the commission of the acts, the convicted person had not reached 18 years of age; d) By virtue of contradictory rulings, or when two or more persons are suffering sanctions for the same offense that could only have been committed by one person; e) When someone is suffering a sanction by virtue of a resolution based on a document or the testimony of one or more persons, provided that said document or testimony has been declared false by an irrevocable judgment in a criminal case; f) When the sanctioning sentence has been pronounced as a result of prevarication or bribery of one or more of the judges who issued it, the existence of which has been declared by an irrevocable judgment, or when the prevarication or bribery has been on the part of the Public Prosecutor's Office for Children and Adolescents with regard to the evidence that served as the basis for the conviction; g) When the conviction has been pronounced in violation of fundamental rights, and as a consequence, the adolescent has been limited in exercising the appeals or remedies provided for in this Code, the law, or international treaties; h) Others established by criminal legislation, provided that they do not contravene the rules established in this Code. Art. 323.- RIGHT TO APPEAL FOR REVIEW. The parties that can file the appeal for review are the public prosecutor, the accused adolescent through his lawyer, his parents or guardians. SECTION VI: ON THE ACTION OF HABEAS CORPUS Art. 324.- RIGHT TO APPEAL. Every child or adolescent has the right to challenge the legality of the deprivation of their liberty before the children's and adolescents' jurisdiction and a prompt decision on said action in accordance with the Constitution of the Republic and the procedure established by Law No. 5353, dated October 22, 1914, on Habeas Corpus and its amendments, and the Criminal Procedure Code. SECTION VII: ON THE REMEDY OF AMPARO Art. 325.- RIGHT TO THE PROTECTION APPEAL. Every child and adolescent has the right to file a writ of amparo before the Children's Court, whenever they feel harmed in the exercise of a right enshrined and protected by the Constitution, international treaties and this Code, for which purpose they will proceed in accordance with the time limits and procedures established for said writ in common law. CHAPTER VII: ON SANCTIONS SECTION I: GENERAL PROVISIONS Art. 326.- PURPOSE OF THE SANCTION. The purpose of the sanction is the education, rehabilitation and social integration of adolescents in conflict with the criminal law, and it is the duty of the judge in charge of the execution of the sanction to ensure that compliance with any sanction satisfies this purpose. Art. 327.- TYPES OF SANCTIONS. Once the criminal responsibility of an adolescent has been established, whether for their commission or participation in an infraction of the current criminal law, and taking into account the assumptions stated in the previous article, the judge may impose the following types of sanctions on the adolescent simultaneously, successively or alternatively, guaranteeing proportionality:

a) Socio-educational sanctions. The following will be established:

1. Admonition and warning;
2. Assisted release with mandatory attendance at comprehensive care programs;
3. Providing services to the community;
4. Reparation of damages to the victim.

b) Guidance and supervision orders. The judge may impose the following guidance and supervision orders.

supervision of the adolescent:

1. Assign it to a specific place of residence or arrange to change it;
2. Abandonment of contact with certain people;
3. Obligation to enroll and attend a formal education center, or another whose objective is the learning of a profession or training for some type of work;
4. Obligation to perform some type of work;
5. Obligation to seek medical treatment, either on an outpatient basis or through hospitalization, or through a rehabilitation program in a public or private institution, with the aim of achieving detoxification and overcoming addiction.

Under no circumstances may the adolescent be held responsible for non-compliance with socio-educational measures due to a lack of support from the person or institution obligated to oversee compliance with said measures. c) Deprivation of liberty sanctions. The following are established:

1. House arrest;
   1. Deprivation of liberty during free time or semi-freedom;
   2. Deprivation of liberty in specialized centers for those purposes;

Art. 328.- APPLICABLE SANCTION. When determining the applicable sanction, the Judge of Children and Adolescents shall take into account the following criteria: a) That the commission of the infraction and the participation of the investigated adolescent have been proven; b) The psychological and socio-familial assessment of the accused adolescent; c) That the sanction imposed on the accused adolescent is proportional and reasonable to the harm caused by the criminal conduct; that it is conducive to their family and community reintegration, and that it is feasible under the actual conditions in which it must be served; d) The age of the adolescent and their personal, family, and social circumstances; e) The circumstances in which the criminal offenses were committed, taking into account those that mitigate or exempt their responsibility; f) The efforts of the child or adolescent to repair the damage caused; g) Any other provision established by criminal legislation, provided that it guarantees the principles of this Code. Art. 329.- DUTIES OF THE COMMUNITY AND PUBLIC OR PRIVATE INSTITUTIONS IN THE EXECUTION OF SANCTIONS. The judge is empowered to order the community and public and private institutions to provide support and accompaniment to adolescents in complying with the sanctions that by their nature involve them. Authorities who fail to comply with the orders of the enforcement judge may be declared in contempt, with the consequent administrative and criminal sanctions. SECTION II: DEFINITION OF SANCTIONS Art. 330.- ADMONITION AND WARNING. The admonition is the oral or written warning that the judge gives to the accused child and/or adolescent, urging him/her to henceforth abide by the rules of family treatment and social coexistence that the Judge of Children and Adolescents expressly establishes. When appropriate, the parents, guardians or those responsible for the child's or adolescent's infringing conduct must be warned and they will be asked to intervene so that the person admonished respects the legal and social norms of coexistence. The admonition and warning must be clear and direct, so that the accused child and/or adolescent, and their representatives, understand the illegality of the acts committed and the responsibility of the parents or representatives in the care of their children. Art. 331.- ASSISTED FREEDOM. This socio-educational sanction will have a maximum duration of three (3) years, and consists of subjecting, to certain conditions, the freedom of the accused child and/or adolescent, who may be obliged to comply with any of the supervision and guidance orders imposed by the Judge of Children and Adolescents. Art. 332.- PROVISION OF SOCIAL SERVICES TO THE COMMUNITY. Providing social services to the community consists of performing, free of charge, tasks of general interest in public or private assistance entities, such as hospitals, schools, parks, fire departments, civil defense, the red cross and other similar establishments, provided that these measures do not endanger their health or physical and psychological integrity. The tasks must be proportionate to the abilities of the accused adolescent and their level of biopsychosocial development, and must include continuous comprehensive care. Tasks may be completed during a maximum of eight hours per week, on Saturdays, Sundays and holidays or on working days, but without affecting school attendance or the normal workday. The provision of social service to the community must have a maximum period of six months. Art. 333.- REPAIR OF DAMAGES. The reparation of damages consists of an obligation to do, on the part of the accused adolescent person in favor of the aggrieved person, in order to compensate or restore the damage caused by reason of the infringing conduct. The Judge of Children and Adolescents may determine the restitution of the thing and compensate or indemnify the damage caused to the victim, when the latter requests it in an accessory manner to the public action. To repair the damage caused, the consent of the aggrieved person, the adolescent person, will be required, and as appropriate, the presence of the responsible adult may be required who expresses their agreement to commit jointly with the accused adolescent person to the repair of the damage. Fulfillment of the obligation to act will extinguish the criminal action. Art. 334.- GUIDANCE AND SUPERVISION ORDERS. Supervision and guidance orders consist of commands or prohibitions imposed by the Judge of Children and Adolescents to regulate the way of life of adolescents in conflict with the criminal law, as well as to promote and ensure their comprehensive development. They will have a maximum duration of two years and their compliance must begin no later than one month after being ordered by the Judge of Children and Adolescents. Art. 335.- DETERMINATION OF DEPRIVATION OF LIBERTY. The Judge of Children, Girls and Adolescents, when imposing socio-educational sanctions and guidance and supervision orders, will set in the same sentence the custodial sentence that the adolescent person must comply with in the event that he or she does not observe the measure or measures ordered by the sentence, provided that it is for a cause that is attributable to him or her. In no case may the custodial sentence, in substitution of the socio-educational measure, stipulated in the sentence be greater than six (6) months. SECTION III: ON SANCTIONS INVOLVING DEPRIVATION OF LIBERTY Art. 336.- EXCEPTIONALITY OF SANCTIONS INVOLVING DEPRIVATION OF LIBERTY. Deprivation of liberty is an exceptional sanction that should be applied when it is not possible to apply any other sanction. The Judge of Children and Adolescents must justify in the sentence his decision to impose this type of sanction, whether it be house arrest, deprivation of liberty in free time or semi-liberty and deprivation of liberty in specialized internment centers. Art. 337.- DEFINITION OF HOUSE ARREST. House arrest is the arrest of the accused adolescent in their home, with their family or responsible persons. When there is no family member available, the deprivation of liberty may be ordered, with the prior consent of the adolescent, in another dwelling or private entity, of proven responsibility and experience that guarantees the purposes of the sanction. Paragraph.- House arrest should not affect the fulfillment of duties, nor attendance at an educational center. The duration of this sanction may not exceed six (6) months. Art. 338.- DEPRIVATION OF LIBERTY DURING FREE TIME OR SEMI-LIBERTY. This form of deprivation of liberty must be carried out in a specialized center, during free time, holidays, and weekends when there is no obligation to attend teaching. The duration of this deprivation of liberty sanction may not exceed six (6) months. Paragraph.- In the event that deprivation of liberty at home or in free time is ordered, in the same sentence, the judge will set the custodial sanction that the adolescent person must serve in a specialized center, in the case of noncompliance with the measures ordered in the sentence, for a cause that is attributable to him. In no case may the custodial sentence be longer than six (6) months. Art. 339.- DEFINITIVE DEPRIVATION OF LIBERTY IN A SPECIALIZED CENTER. Definitive deprivation of liberty in a specialized center means that the adolescent is not allowed to leave of his own free will. It is an exceptional sanction that may only be applied when the adolescent is declared responsible by irrevocable sentence, for the commission of at least one of the following infractions: a) Homicide; b) Permanent physical injuries; c) Rape and sexual assault; d) Aggravated robbery; e) Kidnapping; f) Sale and distribution of narcotic drugs; and, g) Infractions of the current criminal law that are sanctioned with prison sentences of more than five (5) years. Paragraph.- Likewise, the adolescent person will be sent to a specialized detention center when he unjustifiably fails to comply with the socio-educational sanctions or guidance or supervision orders that have been imposed on him in the manner provided in articles 330 and following of this Code. Art. 340.- DURATION OF DEPRIVATION OF LIBERTY IN A SPECIALIZED CENTER. Deprivation of liberty in a specialized center will last a maximum period of: a) From one to three years for adolescents between thirteen and fifteen years of age, completed, at the time of the commission of the infraction; and b) From one to five years for adolescents between sixteen and eighteen years of age, at the time of the commission of the infraction. Art. 341.- REVIEW OF THE SANCTION. Upon completion of half of the imposed sentence, the execution judge must review, either ex officio or at the request of a party, or by technical recommendation of the multidisciplinary team that supervises the execution of the sanction, the possibility of substituting this sanction for a lighter one, in accordance with the development of the adolescent person during the fulfillment of the deprivation of liberty. Art. 342.- PROHIBITION OF IMPOSING IMPRISONMENT FOR NON-COMPLIANCE BY THE STATE. The failure to comply with socio-educational sanctions or guidance and supervision orders by the adolescent person cannot be attributed to him when it is the State that has failed in the creation and organization of the programs for the monitoring, supervision and comprehensive care of adolescent persons in conflict with the criminal law. CHAPTER VIII: EXECUTION AND COMPLIANCE WITH CRIMINAL SANCTIONS BY ADOLESCENT PERSONS Art. 343.- OBJECTIVE OF THE EXECUTION. The execution of the sanctions must establish and promote the necessary social actions that allow the criminally sanctioned adolescent person their permanent integral personal development and integration into their family and society, and the full development of their capacities and sense of responsibility. Art. 344.- MEANS TO ACHIEVE THE OBJECTIVE OF THE EXECUTION. To achieve the objectives of the execution of criminal sanctions for adolescents, the following will be promoted: a) Meeting the basic needs of the sanctioned adolescent; b) Enabling their personal development; c) Reinforcing their sense of dignity and self-esteem; d) Actively incorporating the adolescent in the development and implementation of their individual personal development plan; e) Minimizing the negative effects that the sanction could have on their future life; f) Fostering, when possible and appropriate, family and social ties that contribute to their personal development; g) Promoting open contact between the sanctioned person and the local community, to the extent possible. SECTION I: GENERAL PRINCIPLES AND RIGHTS DURING THE EXECUTION AND COMPLIANCE WITH SANCTIONS Art. 345.- PRINCIPLE OF HUMANITY. In the execution of any type of sanction, the principle of the best interests of the sanctioned adolescent must be taken into account, respecting their dignity and fundamental rights. Art. 346.- PRINCIPLE OF LEGALITY DURING EXECUTION. No sanctioned adolescent may suffer any limitation on their freedom or other rights that are not a direct and inevitable consequence of the sanction imposed. Art. 347.- PRINCIPLE OF TYPICALITY OF THE SANCTION. No sanctioned adolescent may be subjected to measures or restrictions of any right that is not duly established in this Code or in the respective regulations, prior to the commission of the infraction. Art. 348.- PRINCIPLE OF DUE PROCESS. During the processing of any procedure, within the execution of criminal sanctions against the adolescent, due process must be respected. Art. 349.- RIGHTS OF THE ADOLESCENT PERSON DURING EXECUTION. The adolescent shall have the right to: a) Request information about their rights in relation to the persons or officials under whose responsibility they are; b) Receive information about the internal regulations of the institution they attend or in which they are deprived of their liberty, especially those relating to the disciplinary sanctions that may be applied to them; c) Life, dignity, and physical, psychological, and moral integrity; d) Have forms and means of communication with the outside world, to communicate freely with their parents, guardians, or caregivers and to correspond with them, and, where applicable, to permission to leave the premises and the visitation schedule; e) Absolute respect for all their rights and guarantees enshrined in the Constitution, treaties, and this Code; f) Remain, preferably, in their family environment, if it meets the appropriate requirements for their comprehensive development; g) Receive health, education, and other social assistance services from duly trained professionals and under conditions that guarantee their adequate physical and psychological development; h) To receive information and actively participate in the development and implementation of the Individual Sanction Execution Plan and to be placed in a suitable location for compliance; i) To have the right to legal counsel guaranteed throughout the execution stage and to maintain continuous and private communication with their family, legal counsel, representative of the Public Prosecutor's Office for Children and Adolescents, and the Judge of Children and Adolescents; j) To submit petitions to any authority and to be guaranteed a response, including any motions filed through the defense counsel before the Judge of Execution Control; k) To be guaranteed separation from offenders over eighteen years of age and, if under a precautionary measure, to be separated from adolescents declared responsible by a final judgment; l) Not to be held incommunicado under any circumstances, nor to be subjected to corporal punishment. In the event of isolation measures, the multidisciplinary comprehensive care team must monitor and follow up, and must submit a report to the Judge of Execution Control; m) Not to be arbitrarily transferred from the compliance center, unless it is based on a written court order signed by the competent judge; n) The other rights established in the penitentiary system for all persons, which are compatible with the principles governing this Code and international instruments, provided they do not contravene the purpose of socio-educational sanctions and the best interests of adolescents. Art. 350.- OF YOUNG ADULTS. The rights and principles established in this Code shall apply to young people who have reached the age of majority and are serving the imposed sanction, as well as to those who are sanctioned after having reached the age of criminal majority, for crimes committed while they were minors. Art. 351.- INDIVIDUAL IMPLEMENTATION PLAN. For the execution of sanctions that require follow-up, an individual execution plan must be made for each sanctioned adolescent. It will be prepared by the Unit of the National Directorate of Comprehensive Care of the Adolescent Person in Conflict with the Criminal Law, of the Deprivation of Liberty Center, with the active participation of the accused adolescent person and his technical defense or responsible party. This plan will take into account your personal and family qualities, so that you can establish objectives or goals for the execution of the sanction. It must be ready no later than one month after the sanction has begun to be enforced. Art. 352.- DEVELOPMENT OF THE IMPLEMENTATION PLAN. The implementation plan must remain in accordance with what was planned. Therefore, it must be evaluated periodically by the competent body of the National Directorate of Comprehensive Care for Adolescent Persons in Conflict with the Criminal Law. Art. 353.- OF THE REPORTS TO THE EXECUTING JUDGE. The National Directorate for Comprehensive Care of Adolescents in Conflict with Criminal Law must, during the execution stage, inform the judge of the Control of Execution of Criminal Sanctions of the adolescent on a quarterly basis about the progress or obstacles to compliance with the individual execution plan, as well as the family and social environment in which the sanctioned adolescent develops. If necessary, the judge may order public entities to comply with the programs established in the individual implementation plan. Art. 354.- OF THE REPORTS TO THE FAMILY OF THE SANCTIONED ADOLESCENT. Officials responsible for enforcing the sanction should seek to maintain the greatest possible contact with the family members of the sanctioned adolescent. To do this, periodically, at least every two months, inform the closest family member about the development or any advantage or disadvantage of the implementation plan. CHAPTER IX: ON THE AUTHORITIES FOR THE EXECUTION AND COMPLIANCE OF SANCTIONS Art. 355.- OF THE AUTHORITIES IN CHARGE. The control of the execution and compliance of criminal sanctions for adolescents will be the responsibility of the following institutions: a) The Court for the Control of the Execution of Sanctions; b) The Court of Appeals for Children and Adolescents; c) The National Directorate for Comprehensive Care of Adolescents in Conflict with the Criminal Law, of the Attorney General's Office; d) The National Council for Children and Adolescents; e) The National Office of Judicial Defense, of the Supreme Court of Justice; f) The directors of detention centers; g) The coordinating unit for alternative sanctions. SECTION I: ON COMPETENCE IN THE CONTROL OF THE EXECUTION OF SANCTIONS Art. 356.- THE COURT FOR THE CONTROL OF THE EXECUTION OF SANCTIONS. The Court for the Control of the Execution of Sanctions will be responsible for monitoring the sanctions imposed on adolescents in conflict with criminal law. It will have the authority to resolve issues or incidents that arise during the execution of the sentence, to respect the rights and guarantees of the adolescent person and the fulfillment of the objectives set by this Code. Art. 357.- COMPETENCE OF THE JUDGE OF CONTROL OF THE EXECUTION OF SANCTIONS. The Judge of Execution of Sanctions shall have the following powers: a) To ensure that the execution of any sanction is in accordance with the final judgment that imposed it, guaranteeing due process, and other rights and guarantees that assist the sanctioned adolescent; b) To ensure that the individual plan for the execution of the sanctions is in accordance with the objectives set in the final judgment, in this Code and other international instruments. For this purpose, it shall have the power to request information and make binding recommendations to the authority in charge of execution, on the cases it deems pertinent; c) Ensure that the rights and guarantees of the adolescent are respected while serving the sanction, especially in sanctions involving deprivation of liberty; d) Review the sanctions at the request of a party, or ex officio, at least once every six months, to terminate, modify or replace them with less severe ones, when they do not meet the objectives for which they were imposed or are contrary to the process of social integration of the adolescent; e) Monitor the granting or denial of any benefit related to the measures imposed in the final judgment; f) Order the termination of the sanction once the term set by the judgment has expired. Consequently, it must communicate the date of cessation to the authorities of the specialized center at least ten days in advance of the expiration of the imposed sanction, so that it is executed on the same day that the sanction is fulfilled; g) Attend to the requests made by sanctioned adolescents; process their complaints when the situation warrants it and resolve what is appropriate; h) Visit the centers of execution or compliance of the criminal sanctions of the adolescent, at least once a month; i) The other powers that this Code and other laws assign to it. Art. 358.- OF THE COURT OF APPEALS FOR CHILDREN AND ADOLESCENTS. The Court of Appeal for Children and Adolescents is the competent jurisdictional body to resolve, in the second instance, the appeals and legal incidents filed against the sentences issued by the judge of Execution Control of Criminal Sanctions of the adolescent person. SECTION II: OF THE ADMINISTRATIVE BODY IN CHARGE OF THE EXECUTION AND COMPLIANCE OF SANCTIONS Art. 359.- FROM THE NATIONAL DIRECTORATE OF INTEGRAL CARE OF THE ADOLESCENT PERSON IN CONFLICT WITH CRIMINAL LAW. The Attorney General's Office will create the National Directorate for Comprehensive Care of Adolescent Persons in Conflict with Criminal Law. This department will be the branch of the Attorney General's Office responsible for coordinating with the National Council for Children and Adolescents all programs and actions related to the execution of criminal sanctions imposed on adolescents. Para tal efecto, tendrá las siguientes funciones: a)          Asegurar el cumplimiento y garantía de los derechos que asisten a las personas adolescentes sancionadas penalmente; b)          Brindar toda la información que requiera el juez de Control de la Ejecución de las Sanciones y acatar las recomendaciones que éste haga sobre la ejecución de las sanciones sobre los programas y proyectos, así como el manejo de los centros privativos de liber­tad; c)          Velar porque las instituciones responsables del proceso de educación e inserción social de las per­sonas adolescentes en conflicto con la ley penal se desarrolle de un modo eficaz, y garantizadores de los derechos dentro de los límites establecidos en el presente Código; d)         Coordinar, supervisar, organizar y administrar los programas de atención integral y seguimiento de los programas de asistencia obligatoria requeridos para la ejecución de las sanciones socio-educativas; e)          Garantizar, coordinar y supervisar la existencia de programas de atención terapéutica y orientación sicosocial a las personas adolescentes que se encuen­tren cumpliendo una sanción o medida cautelar, en coordinación con sus familiares más cercanos; f)           Disponer la creación de una unidad de atención integral, conformada por un equipo multidiscipli- nario de profesionales en trabajo social, orientación, sicólogos, educadores y demás funcionarios que estime convenientes, el cual brindará atención inte­gral, supervisión y seguimiento durante la ejecución de las sanciones en el marco de los programas y proyectos destinados a la ejecución de las distintas sanciones Podrán auxiliarse de los especialistas de las instituciones públicas o privadas, especializadas en atención integral de niños, niñas y adolescentes, cuando sea necesario; g)          Garantizar que, periódicamente, se pueda informar al juez de Control de la Ejecución sobre el avance en el plan de ejecución de la sanción de cada una de las personas adolescentes que se encuentre cumpliendo sanciones; h)         Organizar, supervisar y coordinar la administración de los centros privativos de libertad, y demás cen­tros de custodia, encargados de la atención integral de las personas adolescentes en conflicto con la ley penal; i)            Impulsar la creación a nivel local y con participa­ción activa de la sociedad civil, las comunidades, los centros de educación formal, patronatos y redes de apoyo, programas para el proceso de educación e inserción social de las personas adolescentes en conflicto con la ley penal; j) Velar, en lo administrativo, que la ejecución de toda sanción sea de conformidad con la sentencia defini­tiva que la impuso, garantizando los derechos que asisten a la persona adolescente sancionada; k) Vigilar y asegurar que el plan individual para la eje­cución de las sanciones esté acorde con los objetivos fijados en la sentencia definitiva, en este Código y demás instrumentos internacionales; l) Velar porque se respeten los derechos y garantías de la persona adolescente mientras cumple la sanción, especialmente en las sanciones privativas de liber­tad; m) Solicitar al juez de Control de la Ejecución, de oficio o a solicitud de parte, modificar la sanción impuesta a la persona adolescente por otra menos grave, cuan­do lo considere pertinente; n) Las demás atribuciones que este Código le asigne y las que se establezcan mediante la respectiva regla­mentación, siempre que garanticen los fines de este Código. Art. 360.- OF COMPREHENSIVE CARE. The National Directorate for Comprehensive Care of Adolescents in Conflict with Criminal Law, through the Comprehensive Care Unit, will dictate the general policies for comprehensive care, both for adolescents deprived of liberty, and in the alternative programs established in this Code. This directorate will create the departments, select and appoint, through public competition, the personnel necessary to implement the comprehensive protection policies for adolescents in conflict with the criminal law in specialized centers. Art. 361.- OF THE SYSTEM FOR THE PROTECTION OF THE RIGHTS OF CHILDREN AND ADOLESCENTS. The authorities responsible for the execution and enforcement of criminal sanctions for adolescents must be guided and aligned with the general policy on comprehensive protection at the national level, developed by the National Council for Children and Adolescents and, in general, the System for the Protection of the Rights of Children and Adolescents. Art. 362.- FINANCING. The National Council for Children and Adolescents and the Attorney General's Office will allocate, from their respective budgets, the corresponding funds for the financing of personnel, detention centers and the various alternative programs and projects of the National Directorate for Comprehensive Care of Adolescents in Conflict with the Criminal Law. SECTION III: ON THE SENTENCES THAT PROVIDE SOCIO-EDUCATIONAL SANCTIONS AND GUIDANCE AND SUPERVISION ORDERS Art. 363.- OF THE SENTENCE THAT IMPOSES SOCIO-EDUCATIONAL SANCTIONS. Once the sentence is handed down imposing on the accused adolescent one of the socio-educational sanctions established in this Code, the judge who imposes it will summon the adolescent and his/her parents or guardians to a hearing which will be recorded in a document, which will be signed by the judge and the sanctioned adolescent. Art. 364.- ON THE EXECUTION OF THE ADMONITION AND WARNING. If the sanction is a reprimand and warning, the parents or guardians may appear at the enforcement hearing, and the judge will address the sanctioned adolescent clearly and directly, indicating the crime committed and warning him that, if he continues with his conduct, more severe sanctions could be applied and inviting him to take advantage of the opportunities granted to him with this type of sanction. It will also remind parents of their duties in the training, supervision, and education of the adolescent. Art. 365.- ON THE EXECUTION AND COMPLIANCE OF ASSISTED FREEDOM. Once the sentence is handed down that sanctions the child or adolescent with supervised release, the officials of the National Directorate of Comprehensive Care of the Adolescent Person will prepare the individual execution plan for compliance with the execution of that sanction. Under this plan, supervised release will be implemented and must include the possible educational or training programs that minors must attend, the type of guidance required, and the follow-up for compliance with the purposes set out in this Code. Art. 366.- ON THE EXECUTION AND COMPLIANCE OF THE PROVISION OF SERVICES TO THE COMMUNITY. Once the sanction is issued, the Control and Execution judge must summon the sanctioned adolescent to indicate the establishment where they must serve the sanction. Likewise, the officials in charge of the National Directorate will prepare an individual plan for compliance with this sanction, which must contain at least: a) The place where this service must be carried out; b) The type of service that must be provided; c) The person in charge of the adolescent, within the entity where the service will be provided. In all cases, the service must be in accordance with the qualities and aptitudes of the child or adolescent, and strengthen in him the principles of social coexistence. Art. 367.- PLACES FOR THE PROVISION OF COMMUNITY SERVICE. Those responsible for non-profit entities, interested in collaborating in supporting the execution of socio-educational sanctions or guidance and supervision, should contact the National Directorate of Comprehensive Care for Adolescent Persons, which must verify their suitability and the programs they offer, before giving them its approval. Community programs in the place of origin or residence of the sanctioned adolescent will have preference. Art. 368.- ON THE EXECUTION AND COMPLIANCE OF THE REPARATION OF DAMAGES TO THE VICTIM. Once the sentence is handed down in which the child or adolescent is sanctioned with reparation of damages to the victim, the officials in charge of the National Directorate of Comprehensive Care of the Adolescent Person will prepare an individual plan for compliance with this sanction. This plan must contain, at least, the following aspects, when restitution is not immediate: a) The way in which the restitution of the damage will be carried out. These forms of restitution must necessarily be related to the damage caused by the criminal act; b) The place where this restitution or compensation for the damage must be fulfilled in favor of the victim; c) The days that the adolescent person will dedicate to such function, which must not affect work or study; d) The daily schedule in which the restitution or compensation for the damage must be fulfilled. For the substitution of compensation for damages with a sum of money, every effort will be made to ensure that the money comes from the adolescent's own efforts. When this substitution is appropriate, efforts will be made to ensure that it does not result in a transfer of their personal responsibility to their parents or guardians. If the substitution is appropriate and the judge has not determined it in his sentence, the Execution Control Judge must assess the damages caused to the victim, in order to set the amount to be paid. SECTION IV:

EXECUTION OF GUIDANCE AND SUPERVISION ORDERS

Article 369. - ON THE EXECUTION AND COMPLIANCE WITH GUIDANCE AND SUPERVISION ORDERS. When imposing the sanction, the judge shall, if possible, establish the place where the adolescent must reside or where they are prohibited from residing. When the place of residence has not been established, the Judge of Execution Control shall define it with the collaboration of the technical teams. Officials of the National Directorate shall inform the executing judge, at least once every three months, about the compliance with and evaluation of this sanction. If this sanction cannot be fulfilled due to financial hardship, the National Directorate, in coordination with the National Council for Children and Adolescents or any other entity of the National Protection System, shall contribute to the transportation costs and any other expenses, according to the possibilities and needs of the sanctioned adolescent. Article 370. - ON THE EXECUTION AND COMPLIANCE WITH THE PROHIBITION OF ASSOCIATING WITH CERTAIN PERSONS. When this sanction applies to a member of the adolescent's immediate family, or any other person residing with them, the sanction must be combined with a prohibition on leaving the premises. During the sanction period, officials from the National Directorate must schedule actions or activities to ensure the adolescent understands the scope of the sanction and monitor its implementation. The Judge of Execution must ensure strict compliance with the terms of the sentence.

Art. 371.- ON THE EXECUTION AND COMPLIANCE WITH THE PROHIBITION OF VISITING CERTAIN PLACES. For the execution and compliance of this sanction, the judicial authority must inform the owner, administrator or person in charge of the premises of the prohibition that the adolescent person has from entering the places indicated. Failure to comply with this order will constitute contempt of court, with the corresponding criminal and civil consequences. The officials of the National Directorate must coordinate the monitoring of compliance with the sanction and inform the Judge of Execution Control about its development. Art. 372.- ON THE EXECUTION AND COMPLIANCE WITH THE ORDER TO ENROLL IN AN EDUCATIONAL CENTER. If the final sentence has not determined it, the Judge of Execution Control, with the support of the National Directorate, must define the formal or vocational educational center that the sanctioned adolescent must enter or the alternative type of educational program that he or she must follow. You should prioritize centers that are close to the family and social environment of the adolescent. During the course of this sanction, officials from the National Directorate of Comprehensive Care for Adolescents must monitor the adolescent's development and periodically inform the judge about their progress and academic performance. Art. 373.- ON THE EXECUTION OF THE OBLIGATION TO PERFORM A WORK. If the final sentence does not establish it, the Judge of Execution Control, with the support of the National Directorate of Comprehensive Care of the Adolescent Person, must define the place and type of work that the sanctioned adolescent person must perform, for these purposes, the National Directorate, with the collaboration of the National Council for Childhood and Adolescence, must have the lists of public and private companies interested in employing adolescent persons. At all times, the company must guarantee the privacy of the sanctioned adolescent's status, and under no circumstances may the adolescent be discriminated against because of their status. Art. 374.- ON THE EXECUTION OF THE OBLIGATION TO RECEIVE TREATMENT FOR DRUG DETOXIFICATION OR ADDICTION: In the event that the final sentence does not establish it, the Judge of Execution Control, in coordination with the National Directorate of Comprehensive Care of the Adolescent Person, must define the place of internment or the type of outpatient treatment to which the sanctioned adolescent person must submit. When it comes to a private detoxification center, the consent of the adolescent will be required, and if it is necessary to pay any sum of money to said institution for the care, the parents or guardians may cover the expenses, and if the family or guardian cannot cover the expenses, the National Directorate of Comprehensive Care of the Adolescent Person and the National Council for Children and Adolescents will be obliged to do so. Art. 375.- OF THE IMPLEMENTATION PLAN FOR ADOLESCENTS WITH PROBLEMS OF DEPENDENCE ON CONTROLLED SUBSTANCES. When preparing the individual plan for the execution of this sanction, officials of the National Directorate for Comprehensive Care of Adolescents must consider the following aspects: a) A prior diagnosis of the causes of drug addiction, which, if possible, allows for establishing the type and degree of drug dependence of the sanctioned adolescent; b) The relationship between dependence and the commission of criminal acts; c) The adolescent's previous experiences in detoxification programs; d) The advisability of maintaining family ties during the execution of the sanction; e) The adolescent's economic conditions for execution in a public or private center, and in the latter case, the economic implications for compliance; f) Any other aspect that the officials of the National Directorate consider appropriate. Art. 376.- NON-COMPLIANCE WITH SANCTION. In cases where the adolescent fails to comply with the socio-educational sanction or guidance and supervision imposed by the judge who issued the sentence, the Judge of Children and Adolescents will be responsible for controlling the execution, making effective the deprivation of liberty of the adolescent in a specialized center, in the terms that have been established in said sentence. Art. 377.- ON THE PARTICIPATION OF THE ADOLESCENT WITH A PROBLEM OF DEPENDENCE ON CONTROLLED SUBSTANCES. In any case, and if possible, the adolescent person with problems of dependence on controlled substances should be guaranteed their participation in defining the type of treatment and the place where it will be practiced. When this sanction is carried out under the modality of internment in a public or private center, the rights of the adolescent person indicated for the execution of the sanction of deprivation of liberty in a specialized internment center must be respected. In this case, the person responsible for the execution will be the director of the public or private center, who must periodically inform the Judge of Execution Control about the progress of the execution. Once the period for which this sanction was imposed has been fulfilled, any type of outpatient or inpatient treatment must end, regardless of whether or not definitive detoxification or elimination of drug addiction has been achieved. However, the adolescent may voluntarily continue with the treatment. Art. 378.- ON SUPERVISION IN SPECIAL CENTERS FOR DEPRIVATION OF LIBERTY. Likewise, officials from the National Directorate of Comprehensive Care for Adolescents must supervise the quality of services in detention centers for adolescents with dependence on controlled substances, in order to verify that it complies with the purposes of the sanction. Any anomaly or irregularity found must be reported to the Judge of Control of the Execution of Sanctions. SECTION V: ON THE EXECUTION OF SANCTIONS INVOLVING DEPRIVATION OF LIBERTY DURING FREE TIME Art. 379.- ON THE EXECUTION OF THE INTERNMENT DURING FREE TIME. Once a sentence has been handed down ordering the deprivation of liberty of the adolescent during free time, the National Directorate for Comprehensive Care of the Adolescent must prepare an individual execution plan, which must establish the following aspects:

a) The public or private establishment where the sanction must be served;

b) The daily or weekly schedule in which you must attend the establishment;

c) The activities that must be carried out in the establishment.

These establishments will not require extreme security. They must be specialized in personnel, areas and conditions suitable for compliance with this sanction. The establishments must be located in places as close as possible to the community where the adolescent person resides. The National Directorate for Comprehensive Care of Adolescent Persons must continuously supervise that these centers comply with the purposes of the sanction. Likewise, the aforementioned department must inform the Execution Control Judge monthly about the compliance of the adolescent with this sanction. Art. 380.- OF THE PRISON CENTERS. The sentence of deprivation of liberty will be carried out in special detention centers for adolescents, which will be different from those intended for the adult prison population. There must be at least two specialized centers: one to house the females and the other to house the males. The centers will not admit adolescents without a prior written order signed by the competent judicial authority. Likewise, within the center, there must be necessary separations, according to the age groups included in this Code. Those in provisional detention will also be separated from those in permanent detention. When adolescents reach the age of majority during the execution of the sanction, they must physically and materially separate themselves from other adolescents. Art. 381.- FROM THE DIRECTOR OF THE CENTER. The management of the detention centers will be in charge of an official, who will be selected and appointed, through a competitive examination, by the National Directorate of Comprehensive Care of the Adolescent Person in Conflict with the Law, with whom he must coordinate and report on his administrative management. Likewise, it will be mandatory to report to the Judge of Control of the Execution of the Sanction and comply with the recommendations made by him. It must promote respect for all the rights and guarantees that assist adolescents deprived of their liberty. Art. 382.- OF THE REPORTS TO THE JUDGE OF CONTROL OF THE EXECUTION. From the first month of the adolescent's admission to the center, the director, in coordination with the multidisciplinary team, must send the respective individual execution plan to the Judge of Execution Control, and quarterly a report on the situation of the sanctioned adolescent and the development of the individual execution plan, with recommendations for compliance with the objectives of this Code. Failure to comply with these obligations will be considered contempt of the competent judicial authority, and will also be reported by the judge to the corresponding administrative superior, without prejudice to administrative and criminal sanctions. Art. 383.- OF THE OFFICIALS OF THE CENTERS. Officials at the centers will be selected through a competitive examination and must have the appropriate skills and abilities to work with incarcerated adolescents. In the detention center, the carrying and use of weapons is prohibited for the adolescent deprived of liberty and, with respect to the authorities of said center, it must be regulated and restricted, only to exceptional cases and of necessity. Art. 384.- INTERNAL REGULATIONS. Detention centers must operate according to internal regulations, which will provide for the organization and duties of officials, security measures, therapeutic care, psychosocial guidance, educational and recreational activities, as well as forms of disciplinary sanction that guarantee due process. Its content must guarantee compliance with the precepts of this Code. Art. 385.- DISCHARGE OF THE ADOLESCENT PERSON. When the adolescent is about to be released from the detention center, they should be prepared for release, with the assistance of the center's multidisciplinary team, and also with the collaboration of parents or relatives, if possible. TITLE III: EXCEPTIONAL POWERS OF THE JURISDICTION OF CHILDREN AND ADOLESCENTS CHAPTER I: OFFENSES THAT CONTAIN MONETARY SANCTIONS Art. 386.- EXCEPTIONAL COMPETENCE OF THE JURISDICTION OF CHILDREN AND ADOLESCENTS. Violations of the rights of children and adolescents, especially protected in this Code, which carry pecuniary sanctions, exceptionally, fall under the jurisdiction of the Criminal Chamber of the Court of Children and Adolescents, even if the accused are adults. Art. 387.- SANCTION FOR OBSTRUCTING A CARE INSTITUTION. Any official or employee who prevents a person in charge or an official of a care institution from complying with any of the special protection measures contained in article 98-1, will be punished with fines of three (3) to twenty (20) officially established minimum wage. Art. 388.- PENALTY FOR DISCLOSURE. Any official, employee, police authority, member of the Public Ministry for Children and Adolescents, or judicial authority who, without due authorization, discloses in whole or in part by any means of communication the name, fact, or document relating to a police, administrative, or judicial procedure that is in progress, and in which an infraction is attributed to a child or adolescent, shall be fined three (3) to twenty (20) officially established minimum wages. Art. 389.- PENALTY FOR FAILURE TO APPEAR. Anyone who fails to appear before the Judge of Children and Adolescents without just cause, within a period of five (5) days in order to regularize any matter relating to children or adolescents, will be fined one (1) to three (3) officially established minimum wage. The maximum fine will be applied in case of recidivism. The judge may order the police to bring in the person who refuses to appear voluntarily. Art. 390.- SANCTION FOR FAILURE TO COMPLY WITH GUARDIANSHIP. Anyone who fails to comply with the obligations imposed on the person holding custody as determined by the Judge of Children and Adolescents or by the National Council for Children and Adolescents, will be fined three (3) to twenty (20) officially established minimum wages, applying double the fine in case of recidivism. Art. 391.- PENALTY FOR TRAVELING WITHOUT AUTHORIZATION. Anyone who transports children and adolescents in violation of the provisions of article 204, regarding the necessary authorization for children or adolescents to travel, will be fined three (3) to twenty (20) officially established minimum wages. The penalty will be doubled in case of recidivism. Art. 392.- SANCTION FOR ALLOWING CHILDREN AND ADOLESCENTS IN GAMES OF CHANCE. Children and adolescents are prohibited from entering or working in places where gambling takes place. Violation of this provision will be punished with one (1) month to two (2) months of deprivation of liberty and a fine of one (1) to three (3) minimum wages officially established in force at the time of committing the infraction. Art. 393.- PENALTY FOR FAILURE TO CLASSIFY PRESENTATIONS. The owner or manager of a cinema or theater who omits the classification of presentations according to the ages to which they are permitted, or who projects actions unsuitable for children and adolescents, such as previews of other films and advertisements, will receive a fine equivalent to three (3) to twenty (20) officially established minimum wages. The competent authorities may order the suspension of the show or the closure of the establishment for one month. Paragraph.- Any person, father, mother, responsible person or authorities linked to the protection of the rights of children and adolescents, have the capacity to empower the Court of Children and Adolescents and demand the imposition of the sanctions established in this Code, as well as the possible damages and losses caused. TITLE IV: COMPETENCE OF THE ORDINARY CRIMINAL JURISDICTION CHAPTER I: OFFENSES THAT CONTAIN SANCTIONS DEPRIVING LIBERTY Art. 394.- SANCTION FOR EMPLOYEES AND PUBLIC OFFICIALS. Persons, employees or officials, who violate the provisions of articles 4, 5 and 6 of this Code, will be subject to a penalty of deprivation of liberty of one month to one year and a fine of one to three officially established minimum wages, in force at the time of committing the infraction. Civil liability, if any, will be assessed according to the principles and provisions of civil and civil procedural law. Art. 395.- SANCTION FOR ILLEGAL DEPRIVATION OF LIBERTY. When a child or adolescent is deprived of their freedom, proceeding to arrest them without them committing a flagrant crime or without the one giving the order and the one executing it being provided with a written order from the competent judge, it will be punished with the penalty of detention of six (6) months to one (1) year of imprisonment and a fine of three (3) to five (5) minimum wages officially established, in force at the time of the commission of the infraction. Art. 396.- SANCTION FOR ABUSE AGAINST CHILDREN AND ADOLESCENTS. The following are considered: a) Physical abuse: Any physical harm received by a child or adolescent, in a non-accidental manner, where the person causing the injury is in a position of superiority or power; b) Psychological abuse: When an adult systematically attacks the personal development and social competence of a child or adolescent; c) Sexual abuse: Sexual activity with a child or adolescent by an adult, or a person five (5) years older, for their own sexual gratification, without regard for the psychosexual development of the child or adolescent, and which may occur even without physical contact. It will be punished with penalties of two (2) to five (5) years of imprisonment and a fine of three (3) to ten (10) officially established minimum wages, in force at the time of committing the infraction, if the author or author of the act maintains a relationship of authority, guardianship or surveillance (teacher, guardians, officials, police, etc.) over the child or adolescent and severe injuries occur, proven by specialists in the area, the maximum of the penalty indicated above will be applied. When the offenders are foreigners or nationals who, in the commission of the act, negotiate, traffic or have been linked for the commission of the act with traffickers or traders of children and adolescents, they will be punished with double the maximum penalty. Art. 397.- SANCTION FOR ABUSE BY THOSE RESPONSIBLE. If the abuse is committed by the father, mother and other relatives, guardians or custodians, responsible for the child or adolescent, against their sons, daughters or those placed under their care or authority, they will be punished with deprivation of liberty from two (2) to five (5) years and a fine of one (1) to five (5) officially established minimum wages. In any case, the punishment must be accompanied by psychotherapeutic treatment. Art. 398.- PENALTY FOR LACK OF ADULT SUPERVISION. When it is proven that the father or mother of children leave them inside the home, without being provided with adult supervision, they will be punished with sentences of two (2) to six (6) months of imprisonment. They will also be referred for psychotherapeutic treatment and social assistance. Art. 399.- PENALTY FOR FAILURE TO REPORT ARREST. When the police authority or the Public Ministry for Children and Adolescents, responsible for the arrest of the adolescent, does not communicate said arrest to the competent judicial authority and the family of the adolescent, or does not inform him of his rights or prevents him from exercising them, as established in articles 261 and 265 of this Code, he will be punished with a sentence of six (6) months to two (2) years and dismissal from office. Art. 400.- SANCTION FOR HARASSMENT AND OTHERS. When a child or adolescent under the authority of guardianship or supervision is subjected to abuse or coercion, pressure and blackmail, the responsible officials and employees will be punished with a sentence of six (6) months to two (2) years in prison and dismissal from their position. Paragraph.- If the child or adolescent, while under the authority of the police or the Public Ministry of Children and Adolescents, is subjected to torture or acts of barbarity during the investigation for the commission of an infraction, the responsible authority will be punished in accordance with Article 1 of Law 24-97. Art. 401.- SANCTION FOR FAILURE TO EXECUTE A RELEASE ORDER. When the competent authority does not proceed with the release order, without just cause, it will be punished with a sentence of six (6) months to two (2) years of imprisonment. Art. 402.- PENALTY FOR FAILURE TO COMPLY WITH THE DEADLINE. When the ordered release of a child or adolescent is not carried out within the period set by this Code, the responsible party or parties will be punished with a sentence of six (6) months to two (2) years of imprisonment and dismissal from office, if that is the case. Art. 403.- PENALTY FOR THEFT. The removal of a child or adolescent from the care of the person who has custody of him or her by virtue of a law or court order, will be punished with imprisonment for two (2) to six (6) years and a fine of three (3) to ten (10) officially established minimum wages, in force at the time of committing the offense. Art. 404.- PENALTY FOR HANDING OVER A CHILD OR ADOLESCENT IN EXCHANGE FOR A REWARD. Promising or delivering a son, daughter or ward in order to receive payment or reward, will be punished with imprisonment for three (3) to ten (10) years and a fine of ten (10) to thirty (30) officially established minimum wages, in force at the time of committing the infraction. Art. 405.- PENALTY FOR UNLAWFUL RETENTION AND TRANSFER. Father, mother, guardians or third parties, author or accomplice of the illegal transfer or retention in the terms established in article 110 of this Code, will be sanctioned with deprivation of liberty of six (6) months to one (1) year and with the payment of a fine of one (1) to ten (10) officially established minimum wages, in force at the time of committing the infraction. Paragraph.- In case of recidivism the sanction will be one (1) to two (2) years of deprivation of liberty and a fine of ten (10) minimum wages officially established, in force at the time of committing the infraction. Art. 406.- PENALTY FOR THE ILLEGAL TRANSFER OF A CHILD OR ADOLESCENT ABROAD. Anyone who promotes or assists, aids or is an accomplice in the transfer of a child or adolescent abroad, for profit or other illicit purposes, in violation of legal provisions, will be punished with a sentence of four (4) to six (6) years and a fine of ten (10) to thirty (30) officially established minimum wages, in force at the time of committing the infraction. Art. 407.- SANCTIONS AGAINST THE OWNER OR DIRECTOR OF MEDIA OUTLETS. The owner or director of a media outlet or a commercial establishment who incurs or allows others to incur in the violation of articles 19, 20, 21, 22, 23 and 26 of this Code, shall be liable to a penalty of one (1) month to one (1) year of imprisonment and a fine of ten (10) to thirty (30) officially established minimum wages. Art. 408.- PENALTY FOR USING A CHILD OR ADOLESCENT OR DISSEMINATING IMAGES. Persons or entities that use or employ children and adolescents of one or the other sex in a theatrical, television or film production that presents scenes of a pornographic or sex nature, will be punished with a sentence of one (1) to five (5) years of deprivation of liberty and a fine of three (3) to ten (10) officially established minimum wages, in force at the time of committing the infraction. Art. 409.- SANCTION FOR COMMERCIALIZATION OF CHILDREN AND ADOLESCENTS. Persons or entities that traffic in children and adolescents in any of the forms established in this Code, will be punished with sentences of twenty (20) to thirty (30) years of imprisonment and a fine of one hundred (100) to one hundred fifty (150) minimum wages officially established, in force at the time of committing the infraction. Paragraph.- The attempt to commit any of the acts constituting this offense will be punished as the crime itself. Art. 410.- SANCTION^ FOR THE^ COMMERCIAL SEXUAL EXPLOITATION OF A CHILD OR ADOLESCENT. Persons, companies or institutions that use a child or adolescent in sexual activities in exchange for money, in-kind favors or any other remuneration, which constitutes commercial sexual exploitation in the form of child prostitution, as well as those who help, facilitate or cover up those who commit this crime, will be punished with imprisonment from three (3) to ten (10) years and a fine of ten (10) to thirty (30) officially established minimum wages, in force at the time of committing the offense. Art. 411.- PENALTY FOR PHOTOGRAPHING, FILMING OR PUBLISHING. Persons or companies whose delegates or employees photograph, film or publish sex or pornographic scenes involving children or adolescents will be punished with prison sentences of two (2) to four (4) years and a fine of three (3) to ten (10) officially established minimum wages in force at the time of committing the infraction. Art. 412.- SANCTION FOR THE SALE OR SUPPLY OF PRODUCTS THAT CREATE PHYSICAL OR PSYCHOLOGICAL DEPENDENCE. Anyone who sells, supplies, administers or delivers, even free of charge, without just cause, to children and adolescents, products whose components may create physical or psychological dependence, even with improper use, will be punished with a sentence of two (2) to five (5) years of deprivation of liberty and a fine of three (3) to ten (10) officially established minimum wages, in force at the time of committing the infraction. Art. 413.- PENALTY FOR THE SALE OF FIREWORKS. Anyone who sells, supplies, administers or delivers, even free of charge, fireworks to children and adolescents, except for those that, due to their low potential, are incapable of causing physical harm in case of improper use, will be punished with a sentence of six (6) months to two (2) years of deprivation of liberty and a fine of three (3) to ten (10) officially established minimum wages, in force at the time of committing the infraction. Art. 414.- PENALTY FOR LODGING AND VISITING. Anyone who hosts or allows the visit of a child or adolescent in a hotel or motel, or in a similar establishment, without the company of their parents or guardians, or without the written authorization of the latter, or without the competent judicial authorization, will be punished with a sentence of one (1) year to three (3) years of deprivation of liberty and a fine of thirty (30) to fifty (50) officially established minimum wages. In case of recidivism, the Judge of Children and Adolescents will determine the closure of the establishment for a period of fifteen (15) days. Art. 415.- SANCTION FOR ALLOWING CHILDREN OR ADOLESCENTS IN BILLIARD ROOMS. Managers or operators of billiard halls will not allow minors to participate in such games or to work in such establishments. Violation of this provision will be punished with one (1) month to two (2) months of deprivation of liberty and a fine of one (1) to three (3) officially established minimum wages, in force at the time of committing the infraction. Art. 416.- JURISDICTION OF THE COMMON LAW COURT. Offences that carry prison sentences for adults, established in this Code, are under the jurisdiction of the criminal courts of common law.

BOOK FOUR: NATIONAL COUNCIL FOR CHILDREN AND ADOLESCENTS (CONANI) AND MEASURES FOR THE PROTECTION AND RESTITUTION OF RIGHTS TITLE I: OF THE NATIONAL COUNCIL FOR CHILDREN AND ADOLESCENTS (CONANI) CHAPTER I: OF THE CREATION AND INTEGRATION OF THE NATIONAL COUNCIL FOR CHILDREN AND ADOLESCENTS (CONANI) AND THE FUNCTIONING OF ITS ADMINISTRATIVE BODIES SECTION I: OF THE CREATION AND INTEGRATION OF THE NATIONAL COUNCIL FOR CHILDREN AND ADOLESCENTS (CONANI). Art. 417.- CREATION. The National Council for Children and Adolescents (CONANI) is created as a decentralized institution of the Dominican State, with its own legal personality and assets, as an administrative body of the National System for the Protection of the Rights of Children and Adolescents. Art. 418.- INTEGRATION. The National Council for Children and Adolescents (CONANI), in administrative aspect, is the highest governing body of the National Protection System that formulates, approves, evaluates, oversees, coordinates and monitors public policies on children and adolescents, and for such purposes it is composed of the following bodies:   SECTION II: OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS OF THE NATIONAL COUNCIL FOR CHILDREN AND ADOLESCENTS (CONANI) Art. 419.- NATURE. The National Board of Directors of the National Council for Children and Adolescents (CONANI) is hereby created as its highest decision-making authority. It is an intersectoral, pluralistic, deliberative, consultative, and supervisory body, composed of governmental and non-governmental institutions. Art. 420.- FUNCTIONS OF THE NATIONAL BOARD OF DIRECTORS OF THE NATIONAL COUNCIL FOR CHILDREN AND ADOLESCENTS (CONANI). The National Board of Directors of the National Council for Children and Adolescents (CONANI) has the following functions:

1. – To govern the operation of the following bodies that make up the National Council for Children and Adolescents (CONANI): The national office, the regional offices, the municipal directorates and the municipal offices, for which it has the power to:

a) Approve the policies, plans, and programs related to children and adolescents to be designed and implemented by the Council's bodies; b) Approve and submit to the corresponding official body the proposed annual budget of the National Council, ensuring an equitable distribution of resources and establishing priorities according to the state of children's and adolescents' rights; c) Approve the submission to the corresponding official body of any proposal to modify the distribution of the items allocated to the Council in the draft Budget and Public Expenditure Law, in those exceptional circumstances that so require; d) Approve the regulations, criteria, and indicators to guide the operation of the National Council for Children and Adolescents (CONANI), at the national and municipal levels; e) Establish advisory committees, specialized permanent committees for the development or consultation of policy and program proposals, and joint or special committees for the study of specific issues. These commissions may be integrated with the participation of governmental and non-governmental institutions that are part of the National Council for Children and Adolescents (CONANI) or not; f) Approve the designation of the General Manager of the National Office, based on a list of three candidates submitted by the Presidency of the National Council for Children and Adolescents (CONANI); g) Remove the General Manager of the National Office from his position for serious offenses or failure to perform his duties, as established by the regulations of the National Council for Children and Adolescents (CONANI).

1. – Coordinate and monitor the design and implementation

of the basic social, welfare and protection policies of the entities that make up the National Directory, in addition to which it will be empowered to: a) Know, evaluate, give opinions and participate in the sectoral plans of the Central Government that are related to the rights of children and adolescents; b) Issue opinions about the percentage of the national and local budget allocated to other public institutions for the execution of social policies related to the rights of children and adolescents; c) Establish coordination procedures between the governing bodies on specific issues of policies and programs related to the rights of children and adolescents; d) Create coordination bodies between the various programs for the care of the rights of children and adolescents; e) Coordinate with the corresponding bodies the orientation of international cooperation resources, related to the rights of children and adolescents.

1. – To guarantee the functioning of protection mechanisms for children and adolescents whose rights are threatened or violated in the administrative and jurisdictional spheres, and for such purposes will be empowered to:

a) Define the profile and selection criteria for members of local protection boards; b) Promote the formation of local boards for the protection and restitution of rights;

c) Define specific plans for the formation and support of the operation of local boards.

1. – Advise the State bodies responsible for the signing of commitments, treaties, agreements and other international instruments assumed by the country in matters of children's and adolescents' rights.

Article 421.- COMPOSITION OF THE NATIONAL BOARD OF DIRECTORS. The National Board of Directors of the National Council for Children and Adolescents (CONANI) is composed of: a) The President of the National Council for Children and Adolescents; b) A representative of the Ministry of Education; c) A representative of the Ministry of Public Health and Social Assistance; d) A representative of the Ministry of Women; e) A representative of the Ministry of Labor; f) A representative of the Attorney General's Office; g) A representative of the Dominican Municipal League; h) Two representatives of NGOs working with children; i) A representative of the Catholic Church; j) A representative of the Evangelical churches; k) A representative of the business sector; l) A representative of the labor sector. Article 422.- REPRESENTATION. The National Board is composed of the head of the public or private institutions or their designated representatives, provided they are high-ranking officials of the entity, who will have full decision-making power. Furthermore, they will be permanent members and responsible for monitoring the agreements and processes approved at that level, in relation to their respective institutions. Paragraph.—Participation of the representatives of the institutions that comprise it in the sessions of the National Board is mandatory and honorary. Art. 423.—COMPOSITION OF THE NATIONAL BOARD. The National Board will be composed of:

a) A presidency;

b) A vice-presidency;

c) A secretariat;

d) Members.

Article 424.- PRESIDENCY OF THE NATIONAL BOARD. The National Board shall be chaired by the President of the National Council for Children and Adolescents (CONANI). Article 425.- VICE-PRESIDENCY OF THE NATIONAL BOARD. The National Board shall appoint a Vice-President from among the representatives of non-governmental organizations that carry out programs with children and adolescents. The Vice-President shall be elected and appointed by a simple majority vote of the Board for a one-year term, without the possibility of reelection for consecutive terms. In the event of the absence or incapacity of the President, the Vice-President shall assume the duties of the President. Article 426.- SECRETARIAT OF THE NATIONAL BOARD. The Secretariat shall be the responsibility of the General Manager of the National Office, who shall have the right to speak, but not to vote, in the decisions of the National Board. Article 427.- APPOINTMENT OF REPRESENTATIVES OF NGOs, CHURCHES, BUSINESSES, AND UNIONS. The representatives of non-governmental organizations, churches, businesses, and unions shall be elected in their own forum, which may in turn revoke said appointment or designation and replace them in case of failure to provide periodic reports on their activities or when they do not act in the best interests of those they represent. Article 428.- MEETINGS OF THE NATIONAL BOARD. The National Board of the National Council for Children and Adolescents (CONANI) shall meet in ordinary session every two months, and in extraordinary session when convened by the President, or at the request of three of its members, provided that the President has not, through action or omission, issued the corresponding summons. Article 429.- DECISIONS OF THE NATIONAL BOARD. The regulations for the internal operation of the National Board shall be approved by a two-thirds majority of its members. All other Board decisions shall be adopted by a simple majority, and in the event of a tie, the Chair shall have the deciding vote. Art. 430.- PRIORITY NATURE OF THE ACTIVITY. The activity carried out by the members of the National Board is considered meritorious, relevant, and of priority. Consequently, for the corresponding legal purposes, absences from work caused by the attendance of its members at Board meetings and by participation in activities inherent to that status are considered justified. SECTION III:

FROM THE PRESIDENCY OF THE NATIONAL COUNCIL FOR CHILDREN AND ADOLESCENTS (CONANI)

Art. 431.- FROM THE PRESIDENCY OF THE NATIONAL COUNCIL FOR CHILDREN AND ADOLESCENTS (CONANI). The National Council for Children and Adolescents (CONANI) will be headed by an executive president, with the rank of Secretary of State, preferably with recognized experience in matters of children's and adolescents' rights; he will be appointed by the Executive Branch. In case of serious offenses or failure to perform their duties, the Board of Directors of the Council, by majority vote, may recommend their dismissal to the Executive Branch. Paragraph.- The President of the National Council for Children and Adolescents (CONANI) will be a full-time official, therefore, he may not hold any other public or private office, except teaching, provided that it is compatible with his functions. The president may not appoint officials or employees with family ties up to the fourth degree of consanguinity and second degree of affinity. Art. 432.- FUNCTIONS OF THE PRESIDENCY OF THE NATIONAL COUNCIL FOR CHILDREN AND ADOLESCENTS. The functions of the presidency of the Board of Directors of the National Council for Children and Adolescents (CONANI) are: a) To deliver to society, every November, and with the approval of the Board of Directors of the National Council for Children and Adolescents (CONANI), an annual written report on the state of the rights of Dominican children and adolescents, which must include at least the following aspects: evolution of the indicators of the situation of the rights of this population, performance and impact of the policies, plans and programs related to the rights of children and adolescents, as well as the allocation, use and results of the corresponding budget items; b) To supervise the operation of the National Office; c) To propose a shortlist of three candidates to the National Board of Directors to fill the position of general manager of the National Office; d) To decide on the appointment of the technical and administrative staff proposed by the National Office; e) To represent the Council before public and private, national and international entities; f) Present to the Board the draft annual budget of the Council, prepared by the National Office; g) Follow up on the decisions of the Board with the support of the National Office; h) Promote coordination with the bodies of the System and any others that intervene in matters related to children and adolescents; i) Ensure the proper use and management of the budget and assets of the institution; j) Convene and preside over the meetings of the Board. SECTION IV: OF THE NATIONAL OFFICE Art. 433.- DEFINITION. The National Office is an entity responsible for providing technical support to the National Council for Children and Adolescents (CONANI), and executing the decisions issued by the Board of Directors, coordinated by a general manager, under the supervision of the Council's president.

Art. 434.- FUNCTIONS OF THE NATIONAL OFFICE. The National Office will be responsible for the following functions: a) Designing policy, plan, and program proposals to be submitted to the Board of Directors, taking into account the specific circumstances of children and adolescents in each municipality; b) Preparing the annual budget proposal for the National Council for Children and Adolescents; c) Preparing the necessary regulations for the proper functioning of the National Board of Directors, the National Office, regional offices, municipal boards, municipal offices, as well as all other proposed regulations for bodies attached to the National Council for Children and Adolescents (CONANI); d) Ensuring compliance with the rules and decisions issued by the Board of Directors of the National Council for Children and Adolescents (CONANI); e) Coordinating, supervising, and monitoring the operation of the regional and municipal offices; f) Define and evaluate indicators to measure the state of children's and adolescents' rights, as well as the plans and programs of the National Council for Children and Adolescents (CONANI), at the national level; g) Maintain statistical records on the matter, including an updated inventory of governmental and non-governmental institutions or organizations that develop programs for children; h) Design, promote, and implement mechanisms for the control, monitoring, and supervision of plans and programs related to children and adolescents developed by public and private entities; i) Manage the budget of the National Council for Children and Adolescents (CONANI), and be accountable for the administration and use of the economic, human, and patrimonial resources of the National Council for Children and Adolescents (CONANI); j) Define the professional profile and propose the appointment of the technical and administrative staff of the National Council for Children and Adolescents (CONANI), and of the professionals of the Multidisciplinary Unit of the Courts of Children and Adolescents. Art. 435.- INTERNAL ORGANIZATION OF THE NATIONAL OFFICE. It will be headed by a general manager who is directly responsible for the coordination and execution of the functions assigned to the National Office. Paragraph.- The profile of the professionals who make up the National Office and its structure will be defined in an internal regulation, approved by the Board of Directors in accordance with the functions of article 420 above. Art. 436.- REGIONAL TECHNICAL OFFICES. These are decentralization instances to enable the application of the functions of the National and Municipal Office of the National Council for Children and Adolescents (CONANI); they will be governed by the provisions that regulate the National Office. SECTION V: OF THE MUNICIPAL DIRECTORIES Art. 437.- DEFINITION. The Municipal Directory is the municipal body that functions in accordance with the National Directory. To this end, it will coordinate with municipal offices and local protection boards. Art. 438.- FUNCTIONS OF THE MUNICIPAL DIRECTORIES. The functions in charge of the municipal boards are the following: a) To approve the adaptation in the municipality of the policies, norms and regulations approved by the National Board; b) To know and approve policies in favor of children and adolescents in coherence with the policies and guidelines formulated by the National Board; c) To form advisory commissions, permanent specialized commissions for the preparation or consultation of policy proposals, programs, joint or special commissions for the study of specific issues. These commissions may be composed of representatives from governmental and non-governmental institutions that are part of the System or not; d) Recommend to the Presidency of the National Council for Children and Adolescents (CONANI) the appointment of the local manager in charge of directing the municipal office, as well as the revocation of the position, if necessary; e) Coordinate and supervise the proper functioning of municipal programs and policies for children and adolescents; f) Receive complaints from institutions or citizens regarding the functioning and performance of municipal offices and local boards and the restitution of rights; g) Guarantee the functioning of the local boards for the protection and restitution of rights. Art. 439.- ON THE INTEGRATION OF MUNICIPAL DIRECTORIES. The municipal boards will be composed equally of representatives from governmental and non-governmental institutions. Municipal boards may not exceed 12 people in their composition and will be established for a period of two years. Paragraph.- The organizational characteristics and integration procedures of the municipal directories will be established by regulation of the Board of Directors of the National Council. Art. 440.- FROM THE COORDINATION OF THE MUNICIPAL DIRECTORY. The municipal boards will have a coordinator, who will convene and preside over the board meetings. The coordinator may be a representative of the governmental or non-governmental institutions that are members of the Board of Directors. Art. 441.- OF THE REPRESENTATION. The representatives on the municipal board must be permanent and will be responsible for monitoring the agreements, plans, and actions approved at that level. Art. 442.- ON THE DESIGNATION OF THE REPRESENTATIVES OF CIVIL SOCIETY. Representatives of non-governmental organizations, churches, businesses, and unions will be elected in their own forum, which in turn may revoke said appointment or designation and replace it in case of non-compliance in the periodic reporting on their management or when they do not respond to the interests of those they represent. Art. 443.- SESSIONS OF THE MUNICIPAL DIRECTORY. The municipal board will meet ordinarily every two months, and extraordinarily when convened by the coordinator, or at the request of three of its members, provided that the coordinator has not made the corresponding call by action or omission. Paragraph I.- The Board sessions are open to the participation of organized and unorganized citizens, who may participate in the Board meetings and request the inclusion of discussion topics for the agenda, according to the order established by the Board, with half plus one of its members. Paragraph II.- The Municipal Board must make public the date, time and place of the meetings, so that interested institutions and persons may participate with the right to speak in said space. Art. 444.- DECISIONS OF THE MUNICIPAL BOARD. The decisions of the Municipal Board will be approved by a simple majority and in case of a tie, the coordinator will have the tie-breaking vote. With the exception of the election of the coordinator of the Board and the selection of candidates for the social ombudsman, which will be done with two-thirds of its members. SECTION VI: OF THE MUNICIPAL OFFICES Art. 445.- DEFINITION. The municipal offices are the operational bodies responsible for providing technical support to the local bodies of the Council, to make the application of the policies and standards approved by the national and municipal boards viable, under the technical supervision of the National Office. Art. 446.- FUNCTIONS OF MUNICIPAL OFFICES. The functions of the municipal offices are: a) All those attributed to the National Office, adapted to the municipal level; b) To ensure strict compliance with the regulations issued by the Municipal Board; c) To register and accredit non-governmental institutions that implement programs and/or projects related to children and adolescents; d) To technically evaluate the programs of non-governmental organizations in order to determine if they meet the requirements for guaranteeing the rights of children and adolescents; e) To promote spaces for inter-institutional coordination in the municipality to enhance local resources in favor of the rights of children and adolescents, provide technical support, and monitor the operation of local protection networks; f) To provide technical support and monitor compliance with protection measures issued by the local boards for the protection and restitution of rights and/or the judges of children and adolescents; g) To establish local networks for the prevention, identification, and support of the monitoring of cases of rights vulnerability or risk; h) Promote and coordinate information, education and communication strategies on the rights of children and adolescents; i) Prepare and submit annual reports on the plans approved by the Municipal Board with the technical recommendations it deems appropriate; j) Coordinate local studies and research on the situation of children and adolescents; k) Train the actors of the National Council on the rights of children and adolescents. Art. 447.- ESTABLISHMENT OF MUNICIPAL OFFICES. Until these offices are established throughout the national territory, the National Council for Children and Adolescents must install at least two municipal offices in each province. SECTION VII: ON THE FINANCING OF THE NATIONAL COUNCIL FOR CHILDREN AND ADOLESCENTS (CONANI). Art. 448.- NATIONAL COUNCIL BUDGET. Through the Revenue Budget and Public Expenditure Law and through ordinary procedures, a specific annual budget will be allocated to the National Council for Children and Adolescents, equivalent to a minimum of 2% of the national budget. Art. 449.- RESOURCES OF THE MUNICIPALITIES. All municipalities nationwide will have a minimum budget allocation of 5% of the total annual ordinary resources they receive, intended for the execution of specific programs and actions for the protection of the rights of children and adolescents in their municipality. Paragraph.- The National Council, in agreement with the municipalities, will define the criteria on the percentage for investment in the municipality referred to in this article. Art. 450.- RESOURCES OF INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION. The National Council for Children and Adolescents may manage funds and resources from international, bilateral and multilateral cooperation recognized by the Dominican State before the corresponding official body. You will be able to manage funds directly with potential international organizations that support initiatives related to policies or programs that support the functioning of the system. Art. 451.- ON THE DISTRIBUTION OF FINANCIAL RESOURCES. The National Council for Children and Adolescents will distribute the resources allocated by the national budget, and other funds, according to the needs and priorities of the different bodies of the Council, at the local, regional and national levels, for its proper functioning. Art. 452.- GUIDING STANDARDS FOR BUDGET EXECUTION. The guiding principles for budget execution will be approved by the Board of Directors of the National Council, for which the following aspects must be observed at a minimum: The technical criteria for prioritization in the budget allocation, which must consider the identification of needs of children and adolescents, based on the diagnoses carried out; The budget allocation for programs supporting basic services, assistance, special protection and guarantee of rights, including local protection boards; Budget allocation for the proper functioning of municipal protection offices; And other criteria established by the National Council for Children and Adolescents (CONANI). CHAPTER II:

ON CITIZEN PARTICIPATION AND NON-GOVERNMENTAL ORGANIZATIONS

SECTION I: ON CITIZEN PARTICIPATION Art. 453.- DEFINITION. Citizen participation refers to the group of people and entities that contribute to the fulfillment and implementation of this Code at the local level. Art. 454.- FUNCTIONS. Citizen participation will be geared towards monitoring and enforcing the rights of children and adolescents, for which it will have the following powers, among others: Collaborate with the bodies of the National System for Children and Adolescents in the promotion, enforceability, protection and guarantee of the rights of children and adolescents, at the national and municipal levels; Demand the intervention of public and private institutions obligated to guarantee the rights of children and adolescents, against those who fail to comply with their obligations; Request before the council chambers of their respective municipality the making of decisions that favor the exercise of the rights of children and adolescents. Art. 455.- ON THE COMMUNITY PARTICIPATION OF CHILDREN AND ADOLESCENTS. Children and adolescents will be able to participate according to their interests through participation mechanisms defined as clubs, children's circles, school participation instances and in the strategies of organizations that develop programs and activities in the community. Other mechanisms for participation and enforceability of their rights may be created. SECTION II: ON THE PROGRAMS OF NON-GOVERNMENTAL ORGANIZATIONS Art. 456.- REGISTRATION OF PROGRAMS. Non-governmental organizations must register their programs with the municipal office, specifying the care regimes and defining the users of the service. Paragraph I.- Any proposed modification to the care programs must be communicated to the municipal office sixty (60) days in advance, to be approved or rejected by said body. Paragraph II.- Non-governmental organizations that develop programs for the care of children and adolescents are obliged to comply with the incorporation requirements established in Law No. 520, of the year 1920, on Non-Profit Associations and other regulatory provisions established by the National Board. Art. 457.- REASONS FOR DENIAL OF THE REGISTRATION CERTIFICATE. Registration will be denied to institutions when: a) They are not properly constituted; b) They do not present a work plan compatible with the mandates of this Code, or are not capable of offering adequate service coverage; c) They do not offer physical facilities in adequate conditions of habitation, hygiene, sanitation and safety; d) They hire people without technical suitability for the performance of their functions; e) They do not guarantee the rights of children and adolescents. Art. 458.- OBLIGATIONS OF GOVERNMENTAL AND NON-GOVERNMENTAL ENTITIES. Entities that apply special protection measures shall have, among others, the following obligations: a) Guarantee the rights of children and adolescents enshrined in this Code and other international instruments; b) Preserve the identity and offer an environment of respect and dignity to children and adolescents; c) Conduct a socio-economic and personal study of each case; d) Maintain an updated data record that includes the date of admission, name of the child or adolescent, of their parents or guardians, education, sex, age, list of their belongings and other information that allows for the identification and individualization of their care; e) Submit a quarterly report, at a minimum, to the municipal office of the National Council for Children and Adolescents (CONANI); f) Conduct an individual socio-family study with its respective recommendations; g) Periodically re-evaluate each case within a maximum period of three (3) months, providing the information resulting from said evaluation to the competent authorities; h) Report to the municipal office of the National Council for Children and Adolescents (CONANI) any cases where difficulties in re-establishing family ties are demonstrated; i) Provide physical facilities in adequate conditions of housing, hygiene, sanitation and safety, including the supply of items intended for their personal hygiene; j) Provide sufficient and balanced food as required by the age of the children or adolescents; k) Provide medical, psychological, dental, pharmaceutical or any other type of care required to guarantee the comprehensiveness of their care; l) Guarantee school enrollment. In the event that it is required, offer school leveling programs; m) Promote cultural and sporting activities; n) Allow religious attendance to those who wish it, according to their beliefs, provided that these do not affect public order and good morals; o) Report to the health authorities and the National Council for Children and Adolescents (CONANI), all cases of children and adolescents carrying communicable diseases for their control and effective treatment; p) Issue deposit receipts for the belongings of children and adolescents when they are admitted to the shelters, guaranteeing their preservation; q) Maintain a support and follow-up program for those who have left the shelter for as long as they require it; r) Manage the documents required for the exercise of their rights. Paragraph I.- The persons in charge or responsible for governmental or non-governmental entities are responsible for the safety and comprehensive protection of the child and adolescent under their care, with all the legal implications and effects. Paragraph II.- To fulfill the obligations indicated, the institutions will promote the active participation of the community. Art. 459.- SUPERVISION OF GOVERNMENTAL AND NON-GOVERNMENTAL ORGANIZATIONS. Governmental and non-governmental organizations that develop protection and care programs aimed at children and adolescents will be supervised by the National Office of the National Council for Children and Adolescents (CONANI), and by regional, provincial and municipal bodies, according to the regulations created for these purposes. Paragraph.- These organizations will be strengthened through advice, training, technical and economic support, if necessary, by the National Council for Children and Adolescents (CONANI), in order to guarantee the application of protection and care measures directed to children and adolescents. Art. 460.- OPERATIONAL PLANS AND ACCOUNT RECONCILIATION. Public or private entities that develop special protection programs for children and adolescents, regardless of the origin of their funds, must submit the operational plans one month prior to the start of their execution and the reconciliation of their accounts within two months of the conclusion to the National Council for Children and Adolescents (CONANI), or its municipal representative. Paragraph.- In case of non-compliance with the provisions of this article, the National Council for Children and Adolescents (CONANI) is empowered to intervene in the administration of the programs. If irregularities are detected that compromise the criminal liability of the administrator or representative of the entity, the National Council for Children and Adolescents (CONANI) will take the matter to the jurisdiction of common law. TITLE II: ON THE MEASURES FOR THE PROTECTION AND RESTITUTION OF RIGHTS, THE PROCESS AND THE EXECUTION CHAPTER I: GENERAL PROVISIONS Art. 461.- DEFINITION. The protection and restoration measures are provisional and exceptional provisions, issued by the competent authority in order to guarantee the fulfillment of the rights of children and adolescents who are in conditions of threat, violation and/or flagrant breach of those rights. Such threat, infringement or violation of rights may