(a) The court may waive the exclusive jurisdiction conferred by § 3-8A-03 of this subtitle with respect to a petition alleging delinquency by: (1) A child who is 15 years old or older; or (2) A child who has not reached his 15th birthday, but who is charged with committing an act that, if committed by an adult, would be punishable by life imprisonment. (b) The court may not waive its jurisdiction under this section until after it has conducted a waiver hearing, held prior to an adjudicatory hearing and after notice has been given to all parties as prescribed by the Maryland Rules. The waiver hearing is solely to determine whether the court should waive its jurisdiction. (c) (1) Notice of the waiver hearing shall be given to a victim as provided under § 11-104 of the Criminal Procedure Article. (2) (i) A victim may submit a victim impact statement to the court as provided in § 11-402 of the Criminal Procedure Article. (ii) This paragraph does not preclude a victim who has not filed a notification request form under § 11-104 of the Criminal Procedure Article from submitting a victim impact statement to the court. (iii) The court may consider a victim impact statement in determining whether to waive jurisdiction under this section. (d) (1) The court may not waive its jurisdiction under this section unless it determines, from a preponderance of the evidence presented at the hearing, that the child is an unfit subject for juvenile rehabilitative measures. (2) For purposes of determining whether to waive its jurisdiction under this section, the court shall assume that the child committed the delinquent act alleged. (e) In making its determination, the court shall consider the following criteria individually and in relation to each other on the record: (1) Age of the child; (2) Mental and physical condition of the child; (3) The child's amenability to treatment in any institution, facility, or program available to delinquents; (4) The nature of the offense and the child's alleged participation in it; and (5) The public safety. (f) If jurisdiction is waived under this section, the court shall order the child held for trial under the regular procedures of the court which would have jurisdiction over the offense if committed by an adult. The petition alleging delinquency shall be considered a charging document for purposes of detaining the child pending a bail hearing. (g) An order waiving jurisdiction is interlocutory. (h) If the court has once waived its jurisdiction with respect to a child in accordance with this section, and that child is subsequently brought before the court on another charge of delinquency, the court may waive its jurisdiction in the subsequent proceeding after summary review.
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