WASHINGTON – A measure that gives second chances to younger offenders who commit violent crimes is now being debated amid calls for change.
“I’ve got folks in my ANC [Advisory Neighborhood Commission] that are being raped, stabbed, armed carjackings, carjackings, theft, armed theft,” said Denise Krepp, an Advisory Neighborhood Commissioner in Southeast. “I’ve got everything short of murder.”
Krepp was among the local residents to raise concerns about repeat offenders being released only to commit more crimes during the D.C. Council’s Public Safety Committee’s roundtable on sentencing on Thursday.
She criticized the Youth Rehabilitation Act, which allows non-murder felony convictions to be set aside for those who are younger than 22 years old at the time of their plea or verdict, and who successfully complete their sentences.
“That means you can set aside a conviction for rape,” she said. “So you have an individual who’s been raped and is going to remember that rape her entire life … but that conviction can be set aside.”
Josh Rovner, an advocate with the Sentencing Project, defended the program. “It’s not a form of leniency, it’s an incentive to smooth reentry,” he said.
Others at the roundtable, held by the D.C. Council Judiciary and Public Safety Committee, argued that for the program to be successful, D.C.’s leaders need to make more resources available in areas such as mental health and job training. They also recommended younger offenders be held at a facility in the District instead of the current arrangement that has them sent to federal facilities in a number of states.
The roundtable came together following a series in The Washington Post, highlighting shortcomings in the District’s criminal justice system.
