Ballot Initiative Calls for Reform of Criminal Justice System

San Jose Criminal Justice Lawyer And Santa Clara Juvenile Justice Attorney

Recently, Governor Jerry Brown announced a ballot measure aimed at reforming both the juvenile and criminal justice systems by proposing that inmates convicted of nonviolent offenses be given the opportunity for early release, and that judges be granted the discretion to decide when a minor should be prosecuted as an adult. Once the attorney general’s office gives the initiative a formal title, the Governor will need to collect more than 585,000 valid voter signatures in order to qualify it for the November statewide ballot.

Good Credits for Early Release

The ballot initiative was drafted largely in response to the 2009 federal order that the state of California reduce its prison population, but also has the dual objective of offering additional chances at rehabilitation for current and future inmates.

The proposal would not change sentencing policies in the state. Instead, the process for awarding credits for good behavior would be simplified, allowing correctional officers the ability to more easily grant awards to deserving, non-violent inmates who have made significant efforts at rehabilitation or participation in prison education programs. The initiative would also allow state parole board officers to consider early release for non-violent inmates who complete their full sentence for primary offenses.

Juvenile Justice System Reform

Currently, California law permits prosecutors to choose whether to directly charge minors who are at least fourteen years old as adults in criminal proceedings. Typically, prosecuting attorneys have to decide whether or not to try a minor as an adult within 48 hours of the crime. This leads to a high number of children being prosecuted as adults before the government is able to obtain important information about the particular child’s circumstances. California is one of only 15 states that grants prosecutors this power. The new initiative would change that, granting judges the discretion to grant or deny a prosecutor’s request to try a minor as an adult.

Charging minors as adults can have lifelong consequences and convincing studies have indicated that children prosecuted in the adult criminal justice system are more likely to commit new offenses and more serious crimes than those who remain in the juvenile system.

This concern about minors being prosecuted as adults was recently discussed in a series of five recent Supreme Court cases. In those opinions, the justices reiterated the fact that children are developmentally more immature than adults, but also more capable of rehabilitation. For this reason, the justices argued, punishments should not only take into account a minor’s decreased level of culpability, but also his or her capacity to change. The juvenile justice system is uniquely designed to take these factors into account, and, for this reason, judgments concerning crimes committed by minors should be handled within that system.

If your child has been charged with a juvenile crime, an experienced lawyer may be able to help reduce the charges or get them dismissed. Please call (408) 277-0377 or contact us online to schedule your appointment with passionate San Jose criminal defense attorney Wesley Schroeder today.

Sources:

http://www.latimes.com/politics/la-pol-sac-jerry-brown-sentencing-reform-ballot-20160127-story.html

https://www.hrw.org/news/2016/01/27/california-ballot-measure-would-reform-juvenile-justice