Assemblyman Karl Brabenec (R,C-Deerpark) joined a bipartisan call for an end to the so-called ‘Raise the Age’ law, which was passed in 2018 and allowed 16- and 17-year-olds charged with misdemeanors to be sent to family court, and those charged with violent felonies like homicide, rape and dangerous weapon offenses to the then-newly created Youth Part of the Superior Court. The problem today resides in the law’s preference to send those youths to family court first and has led to a number of violent crimes going unpunished as a result. Brabenec, like his colleagues in the Assembly, and in localities statewide, wants change.

“For five years, our system has let violent crimes go by the wayside due to a system that favors care for the criminal over care for the victims,” Brabenec said. “We are proposing legislation that amends this oversight to ensure any violent felony offense be maintained in youth-part criminal court. Especially violent crimes must be treated seriously, regardless of the age of the offender.”

According to New York State Division of Criminal Justice Services Raise the Age Statistics, in 2021, only 9%, or 257 of 3,303 adolescent offenders who were arrested for a felony received a conviction. These statistics include 112 arrests for homicide, 80 arrests for sex offenses, 587 arrests for firearm or dangerous weapon offenses, 691 arrests for robbery, 213 arrests for burglary and 20 arrests for terroristic threats, among others.

“Kids in rough neighborhoods are undoubtedly exploited by criminal bodies looking to utilize this loophole, but the crimes themselves are still being committed. We cannot be soft on violent crime any longer. Our law-abiding citizens deserve to feel safe in their neighborhoods and homes, and it’s the job of legislators to ensure the law enforcement bodies that patrol our communities have the tools to do their job correctly, otherwise we’ll see more victims as a result,” Brabenec concluded.