Governor Jeff Landry signed 11 bills into law in support of his vow “to crack down on crime” last week.
One of the bills signed will now treat 17-year-olds charged with crime as adults. This would undo the 2016 reform “Raise the Age" law.
According to the Office of Juvenile Justice the “Raise the Age” law, “ensures that juvenile offenders, including 17-year-olds, are placed in an age-appropriate setting, while still allowing prosecutors to charge them as adults when deemed necessary.”
16th Judicial District Attorney Bo Duhé said more violent crimes are being committed by minors who are sentenced to shorter sentences compared to adults.
“That’s what’s happening in a lot of these crimes,” Duhé said. “It’s the juveniles acting on behalf of the adults or whatever organization their dealing with to commit these violent crimes and that is increasing exponentially. St. Martin Parish.. and its no different in any other parish. We’re struggling with the fact that these 17 year-olds are committing all these violent crimes.”
Duhé said the year after “Raise the Age” was enacted, there was an alarming increase in crime for much of the state.
“After it was enacted and juveniles, 17-year-olds were now not adults but juveniles, the homicide rate of juveniles committing murders jumped 130%,” Duhé said. “It went from 39 homicides committed by 24 juveniles to 90 homicides committed by 61 juveniles.”
Duhé said some parish governments are without facilities to house minors as their case plays out in the courts. Law enforcement agencies sometimes rely on out of state facilities which are costly.
“And because of all of the mandates about the facilities and the amount of personnel and the cost per day to house those juveniles, can be upwards from anywhere from 200, 300 up to $400,” Duhé said.
Louisiana Adult and Teen Challenge is a faith based drug and alcohol recovery treatment homes throughout the state. COO Gary Bentley said about 25% of those in the treatment homes have gone to a juvenile facility.
His concern is that when 17-year-olds are locked up in adult prisons, they will not be required to complete their education.
“If half of your people are 17, now they’re going to your adult detention center, they’re not gonna get an education,” Bentley said. “Which lends itself to staying in the crime staying in the system.”
The bill will be enacted April 19th.
