A. All hearings shall be recorded by stenographic notes or by electronic, mechanical or other appropriate means.

B. All hearings regarding a family in need of court-ordered services shall be closed to the general public, subject to the following exceptions:

(1) the parties, the parties' counsel, witnesses and other persons approved by the court may be present at the hearings. Those other persons the court finds to have a proper interest in the case or in the work of the court may be admitted by the court to closed hearings on the condition that they refrain from divulging any information that would identify the child or family involved in the proceedings; and

(2) accredited representatives of the news media shall be allowed to be present at the hearings, subject to the condition that they refrain from divulging information that would identify any child involved in the proceedings or the parent, guardian or custodian of that child and further subject to enabling regulations the court finds necessary for the maintenance of order and decorum and for the furtherance of the purposes of the Children's Code.

C. If the court finds that it is in the best interest of a child under fourteen years of age, the child may be excluded from a hearing under the Family in Need of Court-Ordered Services Act. A child fourteen years of age or older may be excluded from a hearing only if the court makes a finding that there is a compelling reason to exclude the child and states the factual basis for the finding.

D. A person or party granted admission to a closed hearing who intentionally divulges information concerning the hearing in violation of the provisions of this section is guilty of a petty misdemeanor and shall be sentenced pursuant to the provisions of Section 31-19-1 NMSA 1978.

History: 1978 Comp., § 32A-3B-13, enacted by Laws 1993, ch. 77, § 85; 2005, ch. 189, § 34.

The 2005 amendment, effective June 17, 2005, deleted former Subsection C, which provided that when the court finds it in the best interest of the child, the child may be excluded from a hearing, and added a new Subsection C, which provided that if it is in the best interest of the child under fourteen years of age, the child may be excluded from a hearing and that a child fourteen years of age or older may be excluded from a hearing only for a compelling reason.