ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Tuesday, March 12, 1996 TAG: 9603120083
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C-1 EDITION: METRO
DATELINE: RICHMOND
SOURCE: ROBERT LITTLE STAFF WRITER
The General Assembly approved a broad restructuring of Virginia's juvenile justice system Monday, including harsher penalties for violent teens and increased spending on treatment and prevention programs.
The state Senate and House of Delegates both approved the plan in the 1996 session's final minutes Monday, sending it to the governor, who is expected to sign the package into law.
``I think Virginians are going to see this really have an effect, not just on the kids who are committing crimes but on those who are on that track,'' said Del. Jerrauld Jones, D-Norfolk, chief sponsor of the restructuring package.
``It's not just locking children up, it's lifting them up, too.''
Legislators waited until the final day of the session to pass a bill they have worked on for more than a year that reflects both the complexity and the political sensitivity of a proposal considered one of the banner issues of 1996.
The plan grew from the reports of two commissions that studied juvenile justice, one named by Republican Gov. George Allen and another appointed by the Democrat-controlled legislature.
The two commissions seemed contradictory early on - the Allen commission concentrating on harsher sentences, while the legislature focused on treatment alternatives.
But the package that passed Monday included the bulk of both reports. It was hailed as this year's great bipartisan success in a capitol that still smells of smoke from the bitter legislative battles of 1995.
Among the provisions passed Monday:
* Juveniles 14 and older who are charged with murder will automatically be tried as adults in Circuit Court. They could also be sentenced as adults.
* Those accused of other violent crimes, including sex crimes such as rape and sodomy, could be tried as adults at the discretion of commonwealth's attorneys, a new power for prosecutors under Virginia law.
* Any juvenile convicted of a crime that would be a felony in adult court will no longer have his or her court records sealed. Any case in adult court already is open to the public.
* The state will spend an extra $14 million on community-based correction programs, designed to give judges alternatives to incarceration. Other juvenile justice spending: $10 million to counsel first-time offenders, $8 million for new prosecutors and probation officers, and $1.5 million to defend indigent juveniles.
The compromise almost collapsed Sunday, when Del. Richard Cranwell, D-Vinton, the House majority leader, refused to agree until convinced enough prevention money would be approved.
Cranwell signed the compromise report Monday afternoon, content that his concerns had been addressed. The Senate passed the measure 36-4, the House 95-4.
Assuming Allen signs the bill - he has supported the effort and his staff helped write the bills - the changes would apply to any crime committed after June 30.
``The effects of something like this aren't going to be seen right away,'' said Sen. Mark Earley, R-Chesapeake, who, along with Jones, was one of the chief sponsors of the package.
``But, over time, hopefully you're going to see fewer juveniles who enter the system and fewer repeat offenders.''
LENGTH: Medium: 68 lines KEYWORDS: GENERAL ASSEMBLY 1996by CNB