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Saturday, August 30, 2008

Ind. Courts - Issue of trying youth in juvenile court or as an adult

Jon Murray of the Indianapolis Star takes a long look today at the issue of trying youth in juvenile court or as an adult. He looks at four decisions made by Marion County juvenile court Judge Marilyn Moores, who has "granted one request to waive a murder defendant to adult court and denied three." Details of each case are provided in a side-bar. The main story itself begins:

An 85-year-old woman beaten savagely inside her home. A man and his 18-year-old son shot to death during a robbery. An auto mechanic fatally shot after an argument over repairs.

In each case, a Marion County boy no older than 15 was accused in the crime.
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And in each case, a Marion County judge decided to try the youth in juvenile court rather than the adult system, where penalties are harsher.

The decisions frustrate victims' family members and highlight an issue being debated in juvenile courtrooms here and across the nation: Should young, violent offenders be punished to the greatest extent of the law and locked up in adult prisons -- or should they have the best opportunity for rehabilitation, which means keeping them in the juvenile system and releasing them before they turn 22?

From later in the lengthy story:
The Marion County prosecutor's juvenile division is adjusting to Moores' approach, but officials don't plan to curtail requests to transfer murder cases to the adult system.

Larry Landis, executive director of the Indiana Public Defender Council, said Moores' stance is progressive, in line with that of many juvenile judges who have digested research on young offenders' brain development.

"Adolescent brains look so much different than adult brains," said Bill Glick, executive director of the Indiana Juvenile Justice Task Force. "One of the questions we have is what purpose is served by a person that age spending so much time in the adult system.

"What are we going to get in the end?"

But some argue the answer is simple: justice and deterrence.

In the 1980s and '90s, state lawmakers nationwide eased the way for juveniles who commit violent crimes to be tried as adults.

In Indiana, juvenile judges make the call in a murder case only when the defendant is younger than 16. Older than that, and state law gives prosecutors the authority to file murder charges directly in adult court.

State law also allows the automatic filing of adult charges at age 16 for several violent offenses. But the decision falls to juvenile courts when youths as young as 14 are accused of acts deemed "heinous or aggravated."

Defendants convicted of murder in adult court face a sentencing range of 45 to 65 years. Those handled in the juvenile system must be released from detention facilities by their 22nd birthdays, but many are freed sooner.

"A lot of young killers are more mature than kids 20 years ago," said Steve Johnson, executive director of the Indiana Prosecuting Attorneys Council. "There are other issues that are in the best interest of society. If you commit a crime as a juvenile, there will be consequences."

Posted by Marcia Oddi on August 30, 2008 02:15 PM
Posted to Indiana Courts