Sen. Kissel: “Our work must continue…because the violence continues.”

September 7, 2021

Judges getting better info on juvenile suspects’ records

journalinquirer.com

State judicial officials have moved to close a gap in the information available to judges when deciding whether to order detention of a juvenile suspect arrested outside normal business hours.

Until Sept. 1, a judge faced with that decision at night or on a weekend or holiday often didn’t have access to the juvenile’s full record of arrests and convictions.

Under the new protocol, a juvenile probation officer — who is on call anyway for other reasons — is responsible for providing written information on a juvenile suspect’s past arrests and convictions to police when they plan to seek detention of the juvenile.

The police, in turn, will present the form containing that information to the judge who has to make the initial decision on whether the juvenile should remain in detention until appearing in court or be released promptly and issued a summons requiring a court appearance at a later date.

The change is designed to prevent a revolving door phenomenon that has been much discussed in public forums about the increasingly visible problem of juvenile crime, particularly involving thefts of vehicles or of items left in vehicles.
Police officers have told of juveniles who were arrested only to be out on the street committing more crimes within hours.
State Rep. Thomas Arnone, D-Enfield, welcomed the change.

“Providing this information will help police and judges identify repeat offenders who are responsible in large part for the recent juvenile crime wave,” Arnone said in a statement.

He said police chiefs have told legislators that “they didn’t have access to information they needed to get the worst offenders off the streets.”

JUVENILE CHANGE

GOAL: GET FULL INFORMATION ON AN ARRESTED JUVENILE’S CRIMINAL RECORD TO THE JUDGE WHO HAS TO DECIDE OUTSIDE NORMAL BUSINESS HOURS WHETHER THE JUVENILE WILL BE DETAINED UNTIL APPEARING IN COURT.

MEANS: HAVE A JUVENILE PROBATION OFFICER ON CALL AT ALL TIMES TO PROVIDE THE INFORMATION IN WRITING WHEN POLICE PLAN TO SEEK DETENTION OF A JUVENILE. POLICE WILL PASS THE FORM CONTAINING THE INFORMATION ON TO THE JUDGE.

Sen. John A. Kissel, R-Enfield, the ranking senator on the legislature’s Judiciary Committee, also applauded the change, calling it “a great start in the right direction.”

“Information is critical when it comes to public safety, and this is a positive first step toward making our communities safer,” Kissel said in a statement.

He commended the Judicial Department officials involved in bringing about the new policy but added that “our work must continue, because as we see in the news every day, the tragedies continue. The violence continues and the vehicle thefts continue.

“For repeat offenders, there must be accountability, and there must be consequences,” Kissel said. “All stakeholders and voices must be heard as we address the root causes of crime, including opportunities and support systems.”

One of the major concerns about the wave of vehicle-related thefts is that offenders have become increasingly brazen and, at times, violent.

A leading example has been an incident in which a Hartford teenager is accused of firing two shots in the direction of a Glastonbury woman who came to her door shortly before 3 a.m. July 2 after seeing two youths approach her vehicle, which was parked in her driveway. The bullets hit the front door area, but the woman wasn’t hurt.

The suspect, who was 17 at the time and has since turned 18, has been charged as a juvenile with offenses that include attempted murder and attempted first-degree assault.

Rep. Robin Green, R-Marlborough, whose district also includes Andover, Bolton, and Hebron, called the new policy “a minor fix” among more than a dozen changes she and other Republicans sought after a runner was killed by a teenager driving a stolen car in New Britain.

 

https://www.journalinquirer.com/crime_and_courts/judges-getting-better-info-on-juvenile-suspects-records/article_8474538c-0d0e-11ec-8ed7-bbee64a01bef.html