When a teenager is convicted of a crime, that teenager’s life is changed forever. Saddled with a criminal record, he or she is more likely to drop out of school, face unemployment, live in poverty and commit new crimes in the future. A startling number of teenagers face this diminished future. By the time they are 18 years old, one in six American children will have been arrested, according to a national study released last month.1

In New York state, for far too long, far too many teenagers charged with low-level, non-violent crimes have been tried and sentenced as adults. A 16- or 17-year-old arrested for an offense under New York’s criminal statutes is considered an adult, no matter how minor the offense. When we judge and punish these young people as adults, we miss the opportunity to help them turn their lives around and reduce the likelihood that they will re-offend. Prosecuting and punishing these teenagers as adults for non-violent offenses does not improve their lives or the safety or quality of life in our communities. Research studies repeatedly show that older adolescents who are tried and sentenced in criminal courts have higher recidivism rates, re-offend sooner and go on to commit violent crimes and felony property crimes at a higher rate than those who go through the juvenile system.2

New Year, New Directions

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