A Change in the Age of Accountability?

Senate Bill 889 (SB889) wants to raise the trial age from 18 to 20 and if you, too, don’t understand what that means, keep reading!

Nancy Skinner, a California state senator from Berkeley, brought up the SB889 which would raise the trial age from 18 to 20. That means that 18- and 19-year olds would be tried as juveniles and receive age-appropriate consequences for their crimes. Skinner believes that “when teenagers make serious mistakes and commit crimes, state prison is not the answer.” Skinner is working with other national youth communities to help pass this bill. To them, what they’re doing is smart and going to help our communities and empower our youth.

Some people think that this is letting our older teens get away with too much. Others believe the current laws are too harsh. “Under California law, teenagers can’t buy cigarettes, beer or even rent a car, yet they can be sent to prison for the rest of their lives,” said Alameda County Public Defender Brendon Woods. Their whole view on this is that kids should be treated like kids.

Research shows that the brain isn’t fully developed until a person’s mid-twenties.

In the Spring, this bill could get assigned to its first committee hearing.