Assembly mulls sending teen criminal suspects to Family Court
Lentol says ‘We need to treat our children as children’
Should 16 and 17 year olds who are charged with crimes be automatically tried in adult court? Or should criminal cases involving teenagers be handled in Family Court?
Those were just two of the questions that came up at a Dec. 6 hearing held by Assemblyman Joseph Lentol (D-Williamsburg-Greenpoint), chairman of the assembly’s Committee on Codes, to examine how New York State law governing the age of adult criminal responsibility affects 16 and 17 year olds and whether changes to the law would better serve the youth, families, and public safety.
New York is one of only two states that still automatically charge all 16 and 17 year olds as adults.