Juveniles convicted of the most violent crimes in North Carolina cannot spend more than 40 years behind bars before becoming eligible for parole. The N.C. Supreme Court made that determination Friday in a pair of 4-3 decisions.
RALEIGH — North Carolina is one of only two states that send all 16-year-old offenders to the adult court system rather than the juvenile justice system. Marc Levin, director of the Center for Effective Justice at the Texas Public Policy Foundation, and Right on Crime, a national organization devoted to criminal justice policy research and analysis, believes North Carolina ought to change its “default setting” for treatment of 16-year-olds. He explained why during a conversation with Mitch Kokai for Carolina Journal Radio.
RALEIGH — North Carolina should consider joining almost every other state in making the juvenile justice system the default destination for 16-year-olds charged with crimes. That’s the conclusion two Texas-based criminal justice experts reach in a new Spotlight report prepared for the John Locke Foundation. A report co-author will share findings at noon today in Raleigh.
