ANNAPOLIS, Md. — Flanked by key figures in the State House, democrats released a bill focused on getting tougher on juvenile crime.
"The simple truth is that the juvenile justice system is not working optimally to provide the best outcomes for children and families," said Senate President Bill Ferguson from Baltimore city.
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Over the last year, much of the rhetoric surrounding the issues causing the increase in juvenile crime has been about the lack of punishment for repeat offenders and children not actually receiving the services they need.
This bill aims to stop that from happening.
"We need to make sure our kids are actually participating in the rehabilitative process," said Senator Will Smith, from Montgomery County.
The bill lengthens probation for some crimes, shortens the intake time at the Department of Juvenile Services, requires law enforcement to create reports whenever a juvenile is picked up and lowers the age a child can be arrested for possessing a firearm to 10-years-old.
"The collaboration that is missing in this system is unacceptable. Everybody does just enough to check the box but nobody does enough to coordinate with one another and think about the kids. Think about the kids in the system and think how are we going to move them forward," said Delegate Luke Clippinger, from Baltimore City.
Republicans are welcoming the change to the current juvenile justice laws which they've been against since the juvenile justice reform act passed in 2022.
"We heard the word accountability and even consequences which was... To hear that word so much in a short span from our democratic friends is great, we have been advocating as republicans for a long time that we need to take this seriously in the area of juvenile crime," said Senator Justin Ready who represents Carroll and Frederick Counties.
Maryland's office of the public defender is against the bill, saying in a statement,
"All the evidence shows that incarcerating children makes them more likely to be arrested for new offenses, not less. Yet the legislation introduced today will see thousands more children, disproportionately from Black and brown communities, incarcerated every year."
The bill will have to pass through the legislative process but has the support from leadership in both chambers giving it a strong chance to reach the governor's desk.
