Nassau County District Attorney Kathleen Rice has joined a campaign to end New York’s default prosecution of older teenagers as adults, describing the practice as harmful to youths and public safety.
“Sixteen and 17-year olds are being treated as the adults they have yet to become, and that is supported by brain science,” Rice said in an interview.
Rice has voiced support for Raise the Age New York, a campaign led by a coalition of groups including children’s organizations, prison reform advocates and the NAACP. New York is one of two states, along with North Carolina, that treats defendants 16 years old and over as adults by default, and the campaign is rallying support for a legislative change to the state’s procedures.
The state does allow for the classifying of teenage defendants as youthful offenders, but defendants accused of certain felonies including some non-violent drug charges must be prosecuted as adults.
The standard prosecution of teenagers is harmful, Rice said, and conflicts with her office’s efforts to keep youths out of the criminal justice system.
“I think my goal here would be to figure out a way to redirect kids – to try to prevent them from getting in the system to begin with,” Rice said. “Every kid you can prevent from penetrating the system is a kid who has a much better path in life.”
Rice cited programs her office has used to segregate non-violent teenage offenders from the adult punitive system, including youth courts that feature high school classmates as jurors and adolescent diversion programs that put an emphasis on rehabilitative sentencing for teens.
Preventing teenagers from being sent to prison or acquiring permanent criminal records can help prevent recidivism and save money, Rice argued.
“With a little bit of an investment up front that my office is making, I think it’s going to show financial benefits in the long run,” Rice said.
A spokesman for state Sen. Jack Martins (R-Mineola) said Martins could not comment on the campaign until a specific proposal is produced, and efforts to reach state Assemblywomen Michelle Schimel (D-Great Neck) for comment were unavailing.
The contents of the specific reforms desired by Raise the Age are still under discussion, Rice said.
Among those specifics are where to draw the line on violent or more serious offenses. Rice said she believed any changes would focus on teenagers who do not pose a “specific threat” to their communities.
“All of us are going to sit around the table,” Rice said. “I’m confident that we can come to a consensus on a smart way to do this.”
Reach reporter Dan Glaun by e-mail at dglaun@theislandnow.com, by phone at 516.307.1045 x203 or on Twitter @dglaun. Also follow us on Facebook at facebook.com/theislandnow.
