State's watchdog issues first 'racial, ethnic impact statement' under new Virginia law - Richmond.com
It wasn't the first time that someone found a disparity in the number of older Black youth who end up in adult court for trial on criminal charges, compared with their proportion to Virginia's population.
But the "racial and ethnic impact statement" attached to a Senate bill that would shift many of those cases into juvenile courts was a first under a new state law. It requires the legislature's watchdog agency to assess the effects of proposed criminal justice legislation on racial and ethnic minorities, if asked.
The Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission, the state's watchdog agency, conducted its first - and so far only - impact statement under the law for Senate Bill 134, introduced by Senate Judiciary Chairman John Edwards, D-Roanoke, who also asked for the review.
The statement said that Edwards' bill - which proposes to change the legal venue for cases involving youths from 18 to 21 years old - would most affect Black or other minority youths who represent a disproportionate number of cases tried in general district and circuit courts.
The number of cases is much higher in general district courts, which handle lesser charges, but the disparity is greatest in circuit court, where Black and other minority youth are twice as likely to be tried than others of their age in the general population, JLARC found. In general district courts, Black people and other minorities were 1.4 times more likely to be tried.
The legal outcomes and penalties are much different for youths tried in adult courts than in juvenile and domestic relations courts, JLARC said.
"Cases resolved in J&DR court generally result in less severe sanctions and greater access to rehabilitative services," the agency said, referring to juvenile and domestic relations court. "In addition, some juveniles who commit less severe offenses are eligible to have their cases diverted from the system and handled without court involvement."
Currently, youths under 18 are tried in juvenile court, although they can be transferred to circuit court for trial on serious charges.
JLARC said that general district courts handled the cases of 25,000 older youths a year from 2018 through 2021. Circuit courts handled about 1,900 cases per year during that period, "excluding individuals charged with the most serious offenses, which would still be tried in circuit court."
The Senate Judiciary Committee voted 9-0 to support the bill and refer it to the Senate Finance & Appropriations Committee to assess any effect on the state budget, which would be significant for the courts and Department of Juvenile Justice, according to a separate fiscal impact statement prepared by the Department of Planning and Budget.
source: https://richmond.com/news/state-and-regional/govt-and-politics/states-watchdog-issues-first-racial-ethnic-impact-statement-under-new-virginia-law/article_6799cfff-a977-534b-b6df-92d2e7ea6a05.html
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