In the hearing of any case in which an adult is charged with an offense committed against state laws within the purview of this chapter, if a person refuses to answer a question or produce other evidence of any kind on the ground that he or she may be incriminated by it, or if a child refuses to answer a question or produce other evidence of any kind on the ground that it supports a finding that he or she is delinquent or wayward, and if the attorney general, in writing, requests the chief judge of the family court or his or her designee to order that person or child to answer the question or produce the evidence, the court, in its discretion, after notice to the witness, may order the person or child to answer the question or produce the evidence. In deciding those matters, the chief judge or his or her designee shall consider whether the person may be incriminated or whether the evidence may support a finding that the child is delinquent or wayward in some other jurisdiction. After complying, and if, but for this section, he or she would have been privileged to withhold the answer given or the evidence produced by him or her, that person or child shall not be prosecuted or subjected to penalty or forfeiture for or on account of any transaction, matter, or thing concerning which, in accordance with the order, he or she gave answer or produced evidence. But he or she may, nevertheless, be prosecuted or subjected to penalty or forfeiture for any perjury, false swearing, or contempt committed in answering or failing to answer, or in producing, or failing to produce, evidence in accordance with the order.
History of Section.
P.L. 1981, ch. 217, § 2.