Faith leaders and activists mourned the death of a Fort Bend County youth Wednesday as they gathered to announce an initiative to raise the age of juvenile offenders in Texas from 17 to 18. Read the rest of this article at the Houston Chronicle.
Miguel Moll had a choice: Would he be a beast or a victim? Moll was 17 when he was taken into custody on suspicion of joyriding. He’d been a passenger in a stolen car. It was exactly the kind of dumb thing teenagers do; but under Texas law, 17-year-olds are automatically prosecuted as adults. Read […]
Advocates have rallied at the state Capitol to promote a bill seeking to raise from 17 to 18 the age at which offenders automatically enter Texas’ adult legal system. More than 200 students, teachers and other supporters of a proposal by Houston Democratic Rep. Gene Wu gathered Monday on the Capitol steps. Read the rest […]
Texans have to be 18 years old to vote, join the military or buy a lottery ticket. But when arrested for any crime from misdemeanor to felony, 17-year-olds are treated like adults, an inconsistency some legislators, judges and religious leaders hope to change. Read the rest of this article at the Houston Chronicle.
Seventeen-year-olds can’t vote, join the military or buy cigarettes or alcohol, but they’re treated as adults in criminal cases in Texas. About 200 people rallied at the Capitol on Monday to change that. Read the rest of this article at the Texas Tribune.
Hours after a rally at the Texas state capitol to raise the age of juvenile jurisdiction from 17 to 18, Texomans are voicing their opinions. A local psychologist said raising the age of when a juvenile can be put into an adult jail would be a good thing. Read the rest of this article at […]
An executive can commit no greater sin in business than to misuse capital, labor or real property, the foundations of wealth. Read the rest of this article at San Antonio Express News.
An issue that was debated in the last legislative session and which should be passed this legislative session is raising the age of offenders who are treated as adults in the Texas criminal justice system.
Told to prepare a budget that cuts spending by 4 percent, the Texas Department of Criminal Justice is drawing up a legislative request for the 2018-2019 biennium that would slash its operating budget by about $250 million. The agency won’t say what potential savings — including closing prisons or figuring out how to release more nonviolent […]
A coalition of agencies from the right and left have gathered to push for smarter approaches to handling crime and punishment. They’re also looking to abolish the state’s Driver Responsibility Program, as well as other reductions in penalties and sentences for certain lesser crimes, during the upcoming 85th Texas Legislature session. The Texas Smart-On-Crime coalition […]
