Washington is passing legislation that a child who commits a crime will be charged at the age they commit the crime. (“Bill to require Washington courts to try minors based on their age at the time of the crime awaits Inslee’s signature,” The Columbian, March 1). Such as if someone shoplifted when they were 17 and not charged until 18, they would be tried in juvenile court. It does not automatically qualify someone who is found guilty of first-degree murder, which was my initial worry.
In the PBS video “Combating the Myth of the Superpredator,” points were made that a drop in crime can be correlated to a stronger economy, better police and less drug use; no evidence was shown that over-criminalization of youth led to a drop in juvenile crime. A young person’s accountability is legally less than an adult due to youths often being rash and prone to risk-taking.
NPR published an article “Delinquent. Dropout. At-Risk. When Words Become Labels” in 2015 that brought forward the idea that we can bring together foster care programs, family court, schools, community groups and others to collaborate with the juvenile justice system to help youths find their way out of crime. The passage of this Washington law is a step in the right direction for juveniles.
