Legislature(1993 - 1994)
03/26/1993 01:00 PM House JUD
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* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
SB 54: OFFENSES BY JUVENILE OFFENDERS Number 559 SENATOR RICK HALFORD, PRIME SPONSOR of SB 54, said that his bill addressed a series of juvenile justice issues. First, he said, the bill addressed which juveniles would be tried as adults, how and why. He added that SB 54 also addressed restitution, public information, information with regard to civil suits, and place of incarceration. Number 570 REPRESENTATIVES KOTT and JAMES left at 3:12 p.m. SENATOR HALFORD stated that SB 54 required that juveniles over the age of 16, who committed major felonies, be tried as adults. The bill also set out conditions under which juveniles as young as 14 could be tried as adults, he added. The sponsor said that SB 54 provided that confidentiality protection did not apply for juveniles over the age of 16, after they were adjudicated as delinquent. His goal was to consider the victims of juvenile crimes, as well as the perpetrators. He commented that in each area of the bill, the committee would probably want to address substantive as well as technical questions. SENATOR HALFORD commented that the Senate's position on juvenile justice reform was not the only acceptable position, and expressed his willingness to work with the House Judiciary Committee on SB 54. He stated that the state should strengthen juvenile justice statutes with regard to trials, restitution, information, and deterrence. Number 595 REPRESENTATIVE DAVIDSON asked the sponsor what was lacking in the version of SB 54 which the Senate had passed. Number 599 SENATOR HALFORD said that there were a number of components of the juvenile justice system. Senate Bill 54 addressed the deterrence issue, he said. He expressed an opinion that the legislature should also address laws regarding runaways, a boot camp bill, and other components of the juvenile justice system. Number 612 REPRESENTATIVE KOTT returned to the meeting at 3:15 p.m. Number 619 REPRESENTATIVE DAVIDSON asked the sponsor what provision of SB 54 he thought would be the most effective deterrent to juvenile crime. Number 622 SENATOR HALFORD replied that the fear of sure and sufficient punishment would be increased by the passage of SB 54. He believed that some juveniles now felt they could get away with murder. Number 630 REPRESENTATIVE NORDLUND stated that it appeared that one rationale behind SB 54 was that juveniles could make decisions as adults. Yet, he said, laws still limited the age of majority with regard to voting and drinking. He also cited Senator Halford's opinion that the legislature should enact laws regarding runaways. He saw the sponsor espousing conflicting philosophies. He asked Senator Halford to comment. Number 650 SENATOR HALFORD responded by saying that with regard to minor crimes which did not threaten human life, he recommended cutting juvenile offenders some slack and working toward rehabilitating those juveniles. However, he said that in the situation of a 15-year-old who contemplated and carried out a murder, that juvenile had made a lifetime decision for the victim and a lifetime decision for him- or herself. Number 665 REPRESENTATIVE NORDLUND reminded the committee members that current law contained a procedure for waiving juvenile offenders into adult court. He expressed his opinion that the current procedure worked. He noted that SB 54 did not seem to provide for mitigating circumstances, such as a child murdering his or her parents after enduring years of sexual abuse. Number 680 SENATOR HALFORD, addressing Representative Nordlund's contention that current law was adequate, mentioned a recent Court of Appeals ruling which held that the state could not force a juvenile offender to undergo a psychiatric evaluation. He said that based on that ruling, it would become more difficult for the state to deal with certain juvenile justice issues. Number 686 REPRESENTATIVE DAVIDSON commented that some children reached the age of 16 after facing tremendous disadvantages their entire lives. He asked Sen. Halford to address how SB 54 would allow for fair treatment of such disadvantaged juveniles. Number 697 SENATOR HALFORD stated that the entire criminal justice process allowed for a great deal of leeway with regard to the kind of charge that was filed, and whether or not the state pursued a waiver of a juvenile into adult court. He expressed his opinion that the criminal justice system had many tools with which to address mitigating circumstances. Number 704 REPRESENTATIVE DAVIDSON asked Senator Halford if he believed that hard-core juvenile offenders would be guided by the fear of sure and sufficient punishment. Number 713 SENATOR HALFORD replied that SB 54 was a step in the right direction. MR. GUANELI had some additional comments to make regarding records. However, he said that before getting into the details of SB 54, he would like for the committee to hear from the Attorney General. Number 197 ATTORNEY GENERAL CHARLIE COLE expressed his opinion that SB 54 should have a narrow focus, limited to juveniles who committed first- or second-degree murder. He commented that the present system worked reasonably well when applied to other offenses currently covered by SB 54. On the other hand, he stated that times had changed, making 16- and 17- year-olds a different societal group than they had been when he was a young person. As such, he said that they knew what they were doing and ought to be treated as adults. MR. COLE commented that if it was appropriate for a youth to be charged with assault with intent to kill, then prosecutors should charge him or her with that offense instead of a lesser offense. He added that prosecutors and law enforcement officials should be given the freedom to exercise their own sound judgment with regard to what offense a youth should be charged with. Number 271 REPRESENTATIVE DAVIDSON asked Mr. Cole if he was asking the committee not to disregard the recommendations of prosecutors. He asked Mr. Cole if he was saying that SB 54 did not allow prosecutors as much leeway as they currently enjoyed. Number 284 MR. COLE replied that if he had understood the question, then the answer was "yes." He commented that prosecutors and law enforcement officers should be able to charge offenders with the appropriate offense within their discretion, rather than some lesser offense, simply in order to get around charging a young offender as an adult. Number 302 CHAIRMAN PORTER was struck by the Attorney General's comparison between murder and assault with intent to kill. Number 322 MR. COLE admitted his illustration was a poor one. He stated that he was interested in drawing the line at the point at which the specific intent to take human life was formed. Number 341 REPRESENTATIVE PHILLIPS commented that, in her opinion, a youth who sold drugs could be said to possess the intent to take human life. She asked the Attorney General how he could draw a firm line. REPRESENTATIVE DAVIDSON left the committee at 3:36 p.m. Number 352 MR. COLE did not disagree with Representative Phillips. He stated that it was difficult to choose a cut-off point. He said that the governor had to make a tactical decision regarding the cut-off point, because of a desire to get a juvenile waiver bill passed this year. In that light, he said, offenses which the public pretty unanimously supported for waiver to the adult justice system were chosen to be included in the bill. He added that the waiver process could always be tinkered with later, in order to include more offenses. CHAIRMAN PORTER commented that the committee was losing members, due to the late hour. He stated that the committee would need to draft a committee substitute for SB 54, because of technical problems in the existing bill. He announced that the bill would be brought back before the committee at a time uncertain. Number 408 REPRESENTATIVE PHILLIPS asked that the committee members be provided with an outline of the differences between the governor's juvenile waiver bill and Senator Halford's. REPRESENTATIVE PHILLIPS left the committee at 3:40 p.m. Number 425 LIZ DODD, representing the ALASKA CHAPTER OF THE AMERICAN CIVIL LIBERTIES UNION, commented that the committee was discussing the trial venue of juvenile offenders. She stated that the Constitution compelled the state to try offenders in a venue which would ensure their fair treatment. She said that while it was easy to agree with the Attorney General when he said that a person who pulled the trigger knew what he or she was doing, the assumption was made that the person on trial was guilty of the offense. MS. DODD noted that juvenile waiver bills would put juvenile offenders in the position of trying to convince adult court officials that they were not guilty of an offense. She asked the committee to bear in mind that juvenile waiver bills affected not only where a juvenile would go after being convicted, but also in what arena he or she would be tried. She expressed her opinion that one function of the juvenile justice system was to ensure that young offenders were in an arena where adults were looking out for their rights. MS. DODD indicated that she understood the logic behind SB 54. She stated that it was probably true that kids today were somehow different than they used to be. She said that SB 54 reflected the belief that if society scared kids more, they would stop committing crimes. However, she said that juvenile crime was a complex problem, partially a result of all of the violence inherent in society. She indicated her lack of support for SB 54. Number 484 CHAIRMAN PORTER asked Ms. Dodd, "If a juvenile were waived to adult court, did the standards for conviction not increase?" Number 494 MS. DODD replied that as she was not an attorney, she could not speak to the Chairman's question. She mentioned Mr. Guaneli's comment that judges currently struggled with handing out presumptive sentences to 18- and 19-year-old offenders. She stated that SB 54 would make judges struggle even harder when handing out presumptive sentences to 16- and 17-year-olds. She cited some differences between the juvenile and the adult court systems. ADJOURNMENT CHAIRMAN PORTER adjourned the meeting at 3:48 p.m.
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