This is the last article in my rapid fire series today.  This one deals with the issue of direct file, the practice of determining to prosecute a juvenile in adult court with adult consequences.  This law and option, in the state of Colorado, is used at the sole discretion of the District Attorney’s office.  As you will see, when you read the article, the District Attorney’s office claims to use it sparingly and with much deliberation before deciding to direct file on a juvenile. 

I am going to present some personal testimony.  The DA asks (in this article) if we have ever sat in on a  conference where this decision is made.  Of course not.  We are not aloud.  Nor is anyone, for that matter.  There are no school records, parents, doctors, priests, judges, friends or anyone else aloud to sit in on this conference.  The debate and decision is among a group of district attorneys without any background or knowledge of the juvenile who’s life they are discussing.

The decision to direct file on my son was made in 24 hours.  They did not know or speak to us (his parents), they did not have his school records and they had not spoken with his school.  They did not know if he attended church, had any medical issues, if he had extended family, as a matter of fact they did not even know if he had siblings.  They knew nothing about him.  The only thing they did know is that he had no prior criminal record.  They did not discuss any other factors….and then rendered their decision……behind closed doors……with no accountability or oversight……that’s how it works.

Read on…..

Opponents of trying juveniles as adults say judges, not prosecutors, should be responsible for deciding how to prosecute children.

The Colorado-based Pendulum Foundation is bolstered by a recent poll of Colorado voters that found that by a margin of nearly three to one, voters believe that judges should decide how to prosecute children. 

The Ridder Braden, Inc. poll released on Nov. 6 found that more than 65 percent of Colorado voters favor leaving the decision about how to try juveniles up to a judge.

“Our system is supposed to be based on the rule of law. The bottom line is that we need an impartial person charged with protecting the public and the rehabilitation of juveniles to make decisions that will affect kids for the rest of their lives,” said Mary Ellen Johnson, executive director of Pendulum Juvenile Justice.

But prosecutors say they closely examine all cases, including those involving juveniles, and argue that they have the prosecutorial tools necessary to make an appropriate filing decision.

“We exercise the discretion given to us extremely thoughtfully and carefully as indicated by the very low number of those cases charged as adults,” said Ted Tow, executive director of the Colorado District Attorneys Council.

A bill filed last year by Sen. Brandon Shaffer of Longmont and Rep. Claire Levy of Boulder, both Democrats, would have prevented district attorneys from filing adult charges against 14- and 15-year-olds. But the legislation failed when Gov. Bill Ritter, a former prosecutor, vetoed the legislation.

The Pendulum Foundation says it will push for similar legislation again.

Prosecutors in 1993 were given the authority to determine how to prosecute children as young as 14 after a summer of gang violence.

State legislation this year signed into law by the governor expanded eligibility for sentencing to the youthful offender system to 18- and 19-year-olds. The Pendulum Foundation said the law is a step in the right direction, but said much work still needs to be done.

The youthful offender system is a rehabilitation program used instead of prison for certain crimes committed by juveniles.

In 2006, Colorado lawmakers lowered life without parole sentences for juveniles to 40 years before the possibility of parole. But the law is not retroactive, and Johnson says it also does not go far enough.

She points out that there are hundreds of young men and women serving decades and life sentences in Colorado prisons.

“There are no checks and balances and no hearing before a judge,” said Johnson. “Prosecutors generally make decisions about whether to ‘direct file’ children within 72 hours.”

Opponents of that system say there is not enough time for prosecutors to review all the facts.

“District attorneys are not impartial judges,” said Johnson. “They often have a political interest in prosecuting kids as adults.”

But Tow says prosecutors examine juvenile cases the same way they do all other cases Ń carefully by examining all evidence.

“How many conferences have they actually sat in to watch the DA make the decision?” Tow asks of his critics. “I would submit none.”

This entry was posted on 11. December 2009 at 16:16 and is filed under Legal News, Prison Reform Advocates, Juvenile Reform Advocates, Juvenile Offenders. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response or trackback from your own site.

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