LA CROSSE, Wis. (WTAQ) - Advocates continue to try and get 17-year-old criminal suspects into juvenile court instead of adult court.
A bill to that effect did not pass in the state Legislature, but justice and family advocates have talked about it for years. And the proposed change was examined Tuesday night at a forum put on by an Interfaith group in La Crosse.
Jim Moeser of the Wisconsin Council on Children and Families said 17-year-olds are better off in the juvenile system, where they can get rehabilitation programs and services. He said teens are impulsive and open to peer pressure – and their brains don’t fully develop until they’re in their early 20’s.
La Crosse County District Attorney Tim Gruenke said 17-year-olds were arrested 821 times from the start of 2007 through March. Just over 90 were charged with felonies, 11 were convicted, and 2 were sent to prison.
And state auditors found in 2007 that adult 17-year-old inmates were more likely than their juvenile counterparts to re-offend once they get out of prison. And Moeser said Wisconsin is not safer with 17-year-olds in the adult courts.
