Out of 257 Chicago-area juveniles charged as adults over a 2-year period, 1 was white
by Stephanie Francis Ward
To read this article on the ABA Journal website, click here.
Out of 257 Cook County, Ill., cases between 2010 and 2012 where juveniles were charged as adults, one involved a white defendant, according to a study (PDF) released Tuesday by the Juvenile Justice Initiative. Eighty-three percent of the defendants were black, and most of the cases in the study were from Chicago’s west and south sides.
Illinois has automatic transfer laws, the Associated Press reports, for juveniles between the ages of 15 and 17 accused of murder, armed robbery, aggravated battery with a firearm, or aggravated criminal sexual assault. Legislation is pending in the General Assembly that would eliminate the automatic transferring and give judges more discretion based on hearings that detail the defendants’ situations.
The legislation was before the Illinois House Judiciary Committee in March, the AP reports, and the Cook County State’s Attorney’s office testified against it.