Another legislative session, another push for juvenile justice reform
(The Center Square) – House Democrats are once again making the attempt to turn 2021 recommendations from the bipartisan, bicameral Juvenile Justice Task Force into legislative action.
Last year, they were successful in passing laws derived from just two of the task force’s 35 recommendations. According to Rep. Dan Miller, D-Mt. Lebanon, when broken down into action items the recommendations are more than double that. This year, they’re proposing 10 bills to begin to close the gap in what has been dubbed the CARE package.
“Over the last couple of years, we have tried a variety of ways to try and get more attention to those recommendations,” said Miller. “Two is better than zero, but that’s the best I can say.”
Their efforts this session include addressing the issue of Miranda warnings with the understanding that children aren’t able to understand their rights and available choices in the same way that adults do.
