Justice & Public Safety

by Jacob Schermerhorn
June 13, 2023

Amid rising crime rates, a new Monroe County program plans to focus on youth offenses.

… Prior to the Raise the Age legislation in 2018, 16-and 17-year-olds were also prosecuted as adults. Supporters of the change said the previous system resulted in a lack of services and age-appropriate programming, making it more difficult for those young offenders to reintegrate into society.

… In March, State Assembly Minority Leader Will Barclay, R,C-Pulaski, proposed legislation reforming Raise the Age saying it created a system where young people commit crimes with no consequence.

… A study released by John Jay College of Criminal Justice in February paints a different picture of youth violence in New York City, however. According to its research, violent crimes by those in the “17 and younger” and “18 to 24” age categories fell or remained relatively consistent following the Raise the Age law. “As researchers, we rarely have exactly the right data to prove a theory is true, but we can sometimes use available data to show a theory is probably false,” said Jeffrey Butts, director of the John Jay College Research & Evaluation Center, at the time. “This study shows there is not enough evidence to prove that Raise the Age legislation led to a rise in juvenile violent crime.”

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