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The measure would also eliminate the minimum stay for youths committed to the state's only youth detention center, and would commit no one younger than age 14.
Lawmakers consider bill to prohibit prosecuting anyone younger than 12
The measure would also eliminate the minimum stay for youths committed to the state s only youth detention center, and would commit no one younger than age 14.
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In 2019, 16 children under the age of 12 were charged with a crime in Maine, three of them younger than 10. In 2020, eight children under 12 faced criminal charges. While some were serious crimes such as arson, most would be misdemeanors for adults, such as assault or theft.
Legislators are considering a proposal that would bring those numbers to zero by setting the minimum age of criminal prosecution at 12 years old. As of last year, Maine would be one of only three states to do so, according to data from the National Juvenile Defender Center.
My name is Emily Mooney, and I am a resident criminal justice policy fellow at the R Street Institute, which is a nonprofit, center-right public policy research organization. Our mission is to engage in policy research and outreach to promote free markets and limited, effective government. Given HB 1187’s focus on rethinking and scaling back unproductive juvenile justice interventions in young people’s lives with an eye toward promoting youth wellbeing, public safety and fiscal responsibility, it is of special interest to us.
I want to begin by acknowledging that this bill is the result of a deliberative learning process orchestrated by the Juvenile Justice Reform Council established by lawmakers in 2019. Following their charge, Council members relied on state data, community listening sessions, research and best practices from the field when crafting their recommendations. Improving public safety, the treatment of youth within the system, and limiting or mitigating the factors