Lawmakers and advocates announce a proposal that would reform Raise the Age

Republicans are calling for changes to the state’s Raise the Age law, a statute enacted a few years ago that required 16- and 17-year-olds charged with a crime to be treated as children in court, rather than adults. 

The law was enacted to allow lighter sentences for those individuals, who are now prosecuted in either Family Court, or a special Youth Part of Criminal Court depending on the severity of the charge against them.

Many of those cases start in the new Youth Part of Criminal Court, and are transferred to Family Court after an initial court appearance.

But critics of the law, including New York City Mayor Eric Adams, have said the statute has driven adults to recruit children to commit crimes, particularly those where a gun is involved.

Many other Democrats, particularly those in the state Legislature, have pushed back on those critiques, saying the children charged aren’t to blame for that trend. Supporters of the law don’t want to see it amended, and say the larger increase in crime should be addressed through stronger safety net services.

Republicans disagree, and have called on their colleagues across the aisle to amend parts of “Raise the Age.”

They want violent felonies to be dealt with exclusively in the Youth Part of Criminal Court unless both parties agree that it should be dealt with in Family Court. Under the current law, that’s up to the judge, though most cases ended up in Family Court, state officials have said.

“What I think the DAs are expressing is that it's very, very difficult for them to show these extraordinary circumstances to prevent it going to family court,” said Assm. Mary Beth Walsh, R-Saratoga.

Republicans also want to mandate that victims of crimes committed by adolescent offenders will be informed on the outcome of the case.

“That's very important and that's not happening,” Walsh said.

Republicans want the changes included in this year’s state budget, which is due Friday. As of Monday, Democrats had not shown any appetite for amending the law.