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Page 10 News Street Roots • June 17-23, 2016 District attorney adopts new Measure 11, juvenile policy Changes reflect efforts to correct racial disparities in Multnomah County justice system BY EMILY GREEN much more protected, relative to the law. As people go on in life, and assuming that things work out positive for them, they don’t The Multnomah County District Attorney have an adult conviction on their record.” announced a new policy Wednesday that He said having a probation officer who is may save some juveniles from the trained specifically to work with juveniles consequences of an adult conviction. might be more appropriate in some cases as Juveniles charged with certain Ballot well. “People are just flat out different when Measure 11 crimes will no longer they are 17 years old versus 27,” he said. automatically be kept within the adult court While in most states the decision to move system when they plead down to a lesser, a juvenile into adult court requires a non-Measure 11 offense. hearing, Oregon is “We’re learning a lot one of 15 states as a society about brain where a prosecuting formation, lots of attorney alone can different things relative "People are just flat out dif make the decision to to maturity levels in ferent when they are 17 years try a youth as an individuals in certain age old versus 27." adult groups, so this is an * RO» UMHRWU This policy change attempt to recognize comes four months that,” District Attorney after a case in which Rod Underhill said. Measure 11 charges In Oregon, 15-, 16- were filed against four students at Grant and 17-year-olds charged with any one of 21 High School, eliciting outrage from some crimes that carry mandatory minimum parents, students and teachers. sentences under voter-approved statewide As Street Roots reported in April, the Ballot Measure 11 are automatically indicted Multnomah County District Attorney’s into adult court. That part will not change. Office decision to try the four youths as Until now, however, when those youths adults, facing mandatory minimum pleaded down to lesser, non-Measure 11 sentences of at least 5 years and 10 months, crimes in Multnomah County, they prompted dozens of letters from parents automatically remained in the adult system. and teachers, begging that the prosecutor That means the conviction is an adult try the boys as juveniles. conviction that stays on their record and Underhill said there was no one incident they have a judge and probation officer who or matter that prompted this policy change, work primarily with adults. but said it is aimed, in part, at impacting With this policy change, youths charged racial disparities found in Multnomah with Robbery II, Assault II and Kidnapping County’s criminal justice system. II, can have their case resolved in juvenile The Oregon Justice Resource Center has court if they plead down to a lesser, non analyzed the effect Measure 11 has had on Measure 11 crime, and the prosecutor Oregon’s youths, finding that the majority of deems it appropriate based on a list of the time, it’s youths of color who are tried aggregating and mitigating factors. as adults and face mandatory minimum “The important aspect of this,” Underhill sentences. told Street Roots, “is that you are going to The institute’s director, Bobbin Singh, be supervised in juvenile court as opposed released a statement commending to being supervised in adult court. You’re Underhill’s new policy, however noted that going to have a juvenile conviction, which is STAFF WRITER he thought the district attorney should go further. “The default position should be that minors are kept in juvenile court and not automatically waived through to adult court,” he stated. “Only in rare cases should juveniles be tried as adults. Moreover, the burden should be on the state to demonstrate that a young person should be tried as an adult, not on teenagers to show that they should not” PHOTO BY JOE GLODE Multnomah County District Attorney Rod Underhill. Read more Read about how Measure 11 practices affect young men in ‘Youths branded by Measure 11” at news.streetroots.org.
