H.B. 7332, An Act Concerning Public Safety and the Welfare of Repeat Juvenile Offenders and Their Victims

As an organization committed to justice and equality, the ACLU-CT strongly opposes this unnecessary bill, which would cause more juveniles to be transferred to the adult criminal system by including car theft as an offense eligible for transfer and by expanding judicial discretion during transfer hearings. This bill relies on a 1980s approach to justice when our state needs a 21st-century approach. By tying the hands of judges by requiring them to automatically send juveniles who are accused of certain crimes into the adult court and jail systems, this bill would take Connecticut backward. In the process, it would undermine the wellbeing of youth, increase racial disparities in our juvenile justice system, and jeopardize public safety.