Baker, J.
The General Assembly has also provided an alternative sentencing scheme for juveniles who are waived into adult court and convicted as adults. Indiana Code section 31-30-4-2 provides as follows:
(a) Subject to subsection (c), if:
(1) an offender is:
(A) less than eighteen (18) years of age;
(B) waived to a court with criminal jurisdiction under IC 31-30-3 because the offender committed an act that would be a felony if committed by an adult; and
(C) convicted of committing the felony or enters a plea of guilty to committing the felony; or
(2) an offender is:
(A) less than eighteen (18) years of age;
(B) charged with a felony over which a juvenile court does not have jurisdiction under IC 31-30-1-4; and
(C) convicted of committing the felony by a court with criminal jurisdiction or enters a plea of guilty to committing the felony with the court;
the court may, upon its own motion, a motion of the prosecuting attorney, or a motion of the offender’s legal representative, impose a sentence upon the conviction of the offender under this chapter.
(b) If a court elects to impose a sentence upon conviction of an offender under subsection (a) and, before the offender is sentenced, the department of correction determines that there is space available for the offender in a juvenile facility of the division of youth services of the department, the sentencing court may:
(1) impose an appropriate criminal sentence on the offender under IC 35-50-2;
(2) suspend the criminal sentence imposed, notwithstanding IC 35-50-2-2 (before its repeal), IC 35-50-2-2.1, and IC 35-50-2-2.2;
(3) order the offender to be placed into the custody of the department of correction to be placed in the juvenile facility of the division of youth services; and
(4) provide that the successful completion of the placement of the offender in the juvenile facility is a condition of the suspended criminal sentence.
(c) The court may not impose a sentence on an offender under subsection (a) until:
(1) the prosecuting attorney has notified the victim of the felony of the possible imposition of a sentence on the offender under this chapter; and
(2) either:
(A) the probation department of the court has conducted a presentence investigation concerning the offender and reported its findings to the court; or
(B) the department of correction has conducted a diagnostic evaluation of the offender and reported its findings to the court.
(Emphases added). For reasons explained below, the trial court determined that application of the alternative sentencing scheme is not appropriate in this case.
. . . .
This appears to be a case of first impression, as we have been unable to find other cases interpreting the alternative sentencing statute. The statute itself offers no guidance regarding when the alternative sentencing scheme should be implemented. It is well established that the purpose of the juvenile justice system is rehabilitation so that the juvenile will not become a criminal as an adult. C.B. v. State, 988 N.E.2d 379, 383 (Ind. Ct. App. 2013). Under certain statutorily delineated circumstances, the juvenile court may waive jurisdiction over a juvenile offender:
Upon motion of the prosecuting attorney and after full investigation and hearing, the juvenile court may waive jurisdiction if it finds that:
(1) the child is charged with an act that is a felony:
(A) that is heinous or aggravated, with greater weight given to acts against the person than to acts against property; or
(B) that is a part of a repetitive pattern of delinquent acts, even though less serious;
(2) the child was at least fourteen (14) years of age when the act charged was allegedly committed;
(3) there is probable cause to believe that the child committed the act;
(4) the child is beyond rehabilitation under the juvenile justice system; and
(5) it is in the best interests of the safety and welfare of the community that the child stand trial as an adult.
Ind. Code § 31-30-3-2. The General Assembly has not provided factors such as these to determine when the alternative sentencing scheme should be implemented, but we find these factors to be instructive. We do not hold that trial courts are required to consider these factors, nor do we hold that the State is required to prove that these factors are in play to warrant the implementation of the alternative sentencing scheme, but these are good examples of the kinds of criteria a trial court may consider in reaching its decision on this issue.
In this case, the trial court explained that the reason it chose not to apply the alternative sentencing scheme was based on the nature of Legg’s offense as well as his character. The trial court explicitly found that Legg was charged with a heinous act—murder, in front of a juvenile—and that this act was part of a repetitive pattern of other delinquent acts. Legg was sixteen years old when he committed the act, and he was convicted by a jury. The trial court implicitly found, based upon these facts, that Legg is beyond rehabilitation under the juvenile justice system. Likewise, the trial court implicitly found that the safety and welfare of the community dictate sentencing as an adult. Based upon the facts and circumstances of this case, we find that the trial court did not abuse its discretion by making this decision.
MAY, J., and BARNES, J., concur.