This bill amends RCW 13.40.740 to require law enforcement to provide a juvenile (anyone under 18) access to an attorney for consultation—in person, by phone, or by videoconference—before the juvenile can waive any constitutional rights when an officer questions the juvenile during a custodial interrogation, detains the juvenile on probable cause of involvement in criminal activity, or asks for consent to an evidentiary search of the juvenile or the juvenile’s property, dwelling, or vehicle. The consultation may not be waived. The bill makes statements obtained after those types of contact inadmissible in juvenile offender or adult criminal court proceedings unless one of three limited exceptions applies: the juvenile was provided access to an attorney and then gave an express, knowing, intelligent, and voluntary waiver after being fully informed of the rights being waived as required under RCW 13.40.140; the statement is used only for impeachment; or the statement was spontaneous. Law enforcement may question a juvenile without providing the required consultation only if the officer reasonably believes the juvenile is a trafficking victim (information obtained under that exception cannot be used in any prosecution of that juvenile), or if officers reasonably believe information is needed to protect life from an imminent threat and questioning is limited to what is necessary, or if exigent circumstances exist. After consulting with counsel, the juvenile may direct a parent, guardian, or counsel to advise law enforcement that the juvenile asserts a constitutional right, and assertions made through counsel must be treated as though they came from the juvenile. Any waiver procedures must follow RCW 13.40.140. The bill defines “juvenile” as under 18 and defines “law enforcement officer” broadly to include Washington general, limited, and specially commissioned peace officers, federal peace officers, school resource officers, and other public officers enforcing fire, building, zoning, and life and safety codes. The text refers to other statutes (RCW 13.40.140, RCW 9A.40.100, RCW 10.93.020, RCW 28A.320.124) for definitions and waiver procedures; those external provisions and the prior version of RCW 13.40.740 are not included here, so full interpretation of some terms and of how this amends existing law cannot be completed from these facts alone.

If enacted, police and other officers (including school resource officers and officers enforcing safety codes) would generally have to give anyone under 18 access to talk with an attorney before the young person can give up rights, be questioned in custody, be detained on probable cause, or be asked to consent to a search. In practice this will likely slow or change how officers conduct interviews of juveniles, increase the need for rapid attorney access (by phone, video, or in person), and raise the chance that statements taken without that consultation will be excluded from juvenile or adult court. Prosecutors may have fewer usable statements from juveniles unless one of the limited exceptions applies (trafficking-victim belief with nonuse in prosecution, imminent life-threat information limited in scope, or exigent circumstances). Those most affected are law enforcement agencies, school districts with resource officers, juveniles and their families, and attorneys who will be asked to consult; agencies will face added responsibilities to provide or arrange timely attorney contact and train officers on the new rule, which could create time, coordination, and possibly cost pressures. The bill refers to other statutes for exact waiver procedures and definitions, so details about who supplies and pays for consultation, how quickly it must be available, and how practices change from current law are not clear from the text provided.