We have written about three waiver hearings over the past few weeks regarding persons under age 18 being charged with serious criminal offenses, one after a tragic incident at the Great Frederick Fair, the other following a horrific incident in Manchester.
On Sept. 20 at the fair, Mount Airy resident John Marvin Weed died after allegedly being assaulted by a 15-year-old and a 16-year-old. The 15-year-old was charged, as a juvenile, with manslaughter, first-degree assault, and two counts of second-degree assault while his brother, the 16-year-old, was charged as a juvenile with two counts of second-degree assault. For each case, the Frederick County State’s Attorney’s Office filed a waiver petition to move the case to adult court. Frederick Circuit Court Judge William R. Nicklas Jr. ruled Tuesday that the 15-year-old would remain in the juvenile system. Judge Julie Stevenson Solt announced Feb. 18 that the 16-year-old’s case would remain in juvenile court.
On Nov. 25 at a residence in Manchester, a 56-year-old man was allegedly attacked and had to be flown to University of Maryland Shock Trauma. A 14-year-old girl and a 13-year-old boy were arrested. The girl was charged with attempted first-degree murder as an adult with court documents alleging she attacked the sleeping man with a hammer. Defense attorneys motioned for a reverse waiver hearing. On Feb. 15, Carroll County Circuit Court Judge Fred S. Hecker ruled that the case be moved to juvenile court.
All three of these rulings have been widely debated, with many commenting on social media upset that those charged will be in the juvenile court system, where the perception is they will receive shorter sentences if convicted than they would if charged as adults (given that those convicted can not remain in the juvenile system past their 21st birthday.)
That sort of reaction is wholly understandable. These are serious allegations and, certainly, everyone wants justice for the victims.
Still, the judges who ruled on these waiver hearings did so using a lifetime of experience and weighing far more evidence than the public has seen while likely also considering studies that have consistently shown teen brains are far from fully developed and statistics showing alarming recidivism rates for minors charged as adults.
According to neurologist Robert Sapolsky, whose books include “Behave: The Biology of Humans at Our Best and Worst,” the human brain isn’t fully developed until 25 years of age with the frontal cortex being the last part to mature. “An immature frontal cortex explains the spectrum of teenage behaviors: it’s what makes adolescents adolescent,” wrote Sapolsky, explaining why teens tend to be more violent and impulsive.
Juvenile courts were created because society recognized minors do not have the cognitive development adults have and could benefit from a chance to be rehabilitated. According to American Bar Association statistics, juveniles prosecuted in adult court and released from state prisons were rearrested 82% of the time. In other words, young people exposed to adult prison populations aren’t coming out of incarceration rehabilitated.
According to the Southern Poverty Law Center, research shows those under age 18 in the adult criminal justice system are 34% more likely to be arrested again than those convicted of similar offenses in juvenile court and are 36 times more likely to commit suicide than youth in juvenile facilities. A MacArthur Foundation study found that one-fifth to one-third of those under 16 had as much difficulty grasping complex legal proceedings as adults who had been ruled incompetent to go to court.
None of this excuses any offenses committed, but there is a reason people must be 21 to purchase alcohol or tobacco products and 18 to work many jobs or even to see an R-rated movie and 16 to obtain a license to drive a car.
Regarding the three accused who will be tried in juvenile court, should they be found guilty, we expect they will receive an appropriate punishment including incarceration. And we’re hopeful that, again, if found guilty, once they’ve “done their time,” they will make something productive of their lives.
Sadly, nothing can bring John Marvin Weed back.
And it’s impossible to imagine what the man who endured the alleged hammer attack has been through. But we find it telling that a prosecutor for the Carroll County State’s Attorney’s Office told Hecker that the victim wished for the case to be moved to juvenile court.