KINGSTON – Ulster County District Attorney Holley Carnright was joined Monday in Kingston by law enforcement chiefs from throughout the region, in opposition to Governor Andrew Cuomo’s proposed raise the age legislation, currently under consideration within the state budget bill.
“In essence the governor’s bill seeks to decriminalize most behavior under the age of 18,” including serious felony cases, regardless of the offender’s prior criminal behavior, Carnright said. “The justification for these dramatic changes is frankly a false narrative. Proponents of this bill suggest that New York is one of just two states in the union that prosecute 16-year-olds and 17-year-olds who commit crimes. This is simply patently false. Every state in the nation prosecutes 16 and 17 year olds for crimes, albeit there may be a different nomenclature.”
Carnright also gave specific examples, including a notorious gang slaying five years ago, where the investigation would have failed, had the raise the age bill been in effect at the time. The new law forbids minors from being interrogated without parental permission. Carnright discussed the issues at length, for over an hour, to make his point.
Ulster Sheriff Paul Van Blarcum agreed. “It’s legislation that we feel, our elected officials in Albany are being bullied by the governor to do this, by including it in the budget process, instead of sitting down and having meaningful discussions over the legislation,” Van Blarcum said. “It’s important that our elected officials listen to us, before it’s too late.”
Orange County DA David Hoovler and Sheriff Carl DuBois concurred with their fellow law enforcement officials.
Hoovler said the current system of handling young offenders is working well. “The vast majority of youths who enter the adult criminal justice system do not come out with criminal records and do not end up in jail or prison,” he said. The current effort to raise the age of criminal responsibility “is a solution in search of a problem.”
DuBois said the proposed law “would task the sheriff’s office to spend countless hours transporting young offenders to secure facilities around the state.” None of those is in Orange County yet the expense of the transportation would be borne by local taxpayers, resulting in “another unfunded mandate,” he said.
