16 and 17 Year-Olds in North Carolina Could be Tried Again as Adults [Video]

State lawmakers are scheduled to vote on a bill that would roll back landmark juvenile justice reforms that passed with broad bipartisan support several years ago.

Until 2019, North Carolina was the only state in the country to still automatically charge all 16- and 17-year-olds in adult court, even for the most minor criminal charges. Then, a Raise-The-Age law changed that by allowing those teenage offenders to be tried in juvenile court, while also leaving the option for particularly serious crimes to be moved up to adult court. Republican lawmakers in the state Senate, working with a lobbyist for prosecutors, proposed HB 834. It would let the state go back to automatically charging 16- and 17-year-olds as adults for a wide range of felony offenses.

The proposal, if passed, could also lead to more severe charges for adults who entice young people to commit crimes.

It is scheduled to go before the full state House of Representatives on Wednesday. The bill has passed through several legislative committees in recent weeks over opposition from advocates from civil liberties and racial justice groups, as well as Democratic lawmakers.

Opponents point to studies showing that teenage offenders are less likely to commit more crimes in the future if they go through the juvenile justice system, instead of the adult prison system.

They also say juvenile justice facilities do more than adult prisons to teach inmates skills and help resolve mental issues that may have contributed to their past criminal behavior. Supporters say it will help make it easier to use the prison system to punish people who commit violent crimes, even if they’re teenagers.

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