Juvenile Sentencing Options in TexasJuvenile Indeterminate Sentencing sentenced by juvenile judge available for all offenses can stay in TYC up until age 19 and then must be released

Determinate (Blended) Sentencing sentenced by juvenile judge available only for the most serious and violent offenses sentences up to 40 years start sentence in TYC, then possible transfer to adult prison at age 19 if not rehabilitated

Adult Certification transferred by juvenile judge to adult criminal court available for any felony offense, including state jail felonies and non-violent crimes sentences up to 99 years start sentence in adult prison as early as age 14

Adult Certifications in Texas vs. Determinate Sentences with TYC Placement FY 2005 10 Source: Texas Juvenile Probation Commission Data, 2010

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160157

229162

202185

245106

227147

229108

2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010

Certified

Determinate Sentence

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CertifiedDeterminate SentenceSeries 3

FY 20051601572

FY 20062291622

FY 20072021853

FY 20082451065

FY 2009227147

FY 2010229108

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Comparing Certified Juveniles and Determinate Sentence Juveniles

Demographic Factors

Similar in age (mostly 16 year-olds in each population)

Similar in gender breakdown (overwhelmingly male)

Similar in ethnicity (disproportionately African-American in both populations (40%))

Main difference is county of conviction

Source: Texas Juvenile Probation Commission Data, 2010Number of Certifications and Determinate Sentences with TYC Placement by County, FY 2006 - 09

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301114

141134

6280

335

223

2043

2015

192

1910

174

150

Certifications

Determinate Sentences

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CertificationsDeterminate SentencesSeries 3

Harris3011142

Dallas1411342

Bexar62803

Jefferson335

Hidalgo223

Tarrant2043

Webb2015

Nueces192

Smith1910

Lubbock174

Potter150

Comparing Certified Juvenile and Determinate Sentence Populations by Top 5 Offenses, FY 2005 - 09

Source: Texas Juvenile Probation Commission Data, 2010 * Homicide includes Capital Murder, Murder, Felony Murder, Manslaughter, Involuntary Manslaughter, and Criminally Negligent Homicide.

CERTIFICATIONSDETERMINATE SENTENCES WITH TYC PLACEMENTOffense% of Total CertificationsOffense% of Total Determinate SentencesAggravated Robbery35.2%Aggravated Robbery40.7%Sexual Assault19.0%Sexual Assault16.5%Homicide*17.0%Aggravated Assault16.5%Aggravated Assault10.3%Violation of Probation for Sexual Assault 6.3%Burglary5.6%Homicide*4.8%Other13.0%Other15.2%TOTAL100%TOTAL100%

Comparing Criminal Offenses Agg. Robbery cases dominate both populations, and together with sexual assault, accounts for more than 55% of cases in each category

Homicide only accounts for 17% of certification cases (contrary to popular perception)

Determinate Sentence cases include almost exclusively violent crimes, including homicide

Non-violent offenses, including state jail felonies, account for 10-15% of certification cases

Certified juveniles and Determinate Sentence juveniles are relatively comparable when it comes to criminal offenses. Certified youth are not demonstrably more violent than youth retained in juvenile court.

Prior Referrals for Certified Juveniles FY 2005-09Prior Referrals Determinate Sentence Juveniles FY 2005-09Source: Texas Juvenile Probation Commission Data, 2010

Comparing Criminal History Certified youth and Determinate Sentence youth have similar numbers of prior referrals to juvenile court

Referrals can be for any offense, including truancy and curfew violations Roughly a quarter of each population have never been in trouble before

Almost 45% have had either no prior referrals or only one

Dispels myth that certified youth are chronic, repeat offenders

Prior Violent Referralfor Certified Juveniles, FY 2005 -09Prior Violent Referralfor Determinate Sentence JuvenilesFY 2005-09Source: Texas Juvenile Probation Commission Data, 2010 No Prior Violent Referral65%

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276

787

Sales

Prior Violent Referral28%

No Prior Violent Referral72%

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Sales

Violent Prior Referral276

No Prior Violent Referral787

3rd Qtr1.4

4th Qtr1.2

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276

787

Prior Violent Referral35%

Sales

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Sales

Violent Prior Referral276

No Prior Violent Referral787

3rd Qtr1.4

4th Qtr1.2

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Prior Violent Criminal History?

Overwhelming majority of both Certified juveniles and Determinate Sentence juveniles do NOT have a prior history of violence

Only 28% of the certified juveniles and 35% of the DS juveniles had a prior referral for a violent offense

Violent includes felony-level offenses such as homicide, attempted homicide, sexual assault, aggravated assault, aggravated robbery, robbery, aggravated kidnapping, kidnapping, weapons offenses, arson with injury or death, and terroristic threat.

Prior TYC Commitment for Certified Juveniles FY 2005 09 Source: Texas Juvenile Probation Commission Data, 2010

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120

943

Sales

No Prior TYC Commitment89%

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Sales

Prior Commitment120

No Prior TYC Commitment943

3rd Qtr1.4

4th Qtr1.2

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Beyond the Help of the Juvenile Justice System?

9 out of 10 certified juveniles have not exhausted the most serious options offered by the juvenile system

Certified youth miss out on successful rehabilitative programs in TYC, such as the Capital and Serious Violent Offenders Program (95% success rate) Majority have relatively minor and non-violent criminal histories, and many are first-time offenders

Length of sentences for current youth age 19 and under at TDCJ who were received prior to age 17FY 2010

Source: Texas Department of Criminal Justice Data, 2010Source: Texas Youth Commission Data, 2010

Sentence length# Youthful Offenders% Youthful OffendersLess than 4 years66.4%4-10 yrs4952.1%11-30 yrs2526.6%31-40 yrs55.3%41 - Life99.6%TOTAL94100%

Sentence length# Juveniles% JuvenilesLess than 4 years11515.4%4-10 yrs46161.8%11-30 yrs15620.9%31-40 yrs141.9%TOTAL746100%

Most Certified juveniles will get out of prison while still young

58% of certified juveniles in prison received sentences of less than 10 years

Only 9 juveniles in recent years received sentences longer than the 40 years available under determinate sentencing

Similar sentence lengths for certified juveniles and determinate sentence juveniles

But certified juveniles do not have access to the rehabilitative programs they need for re-entry

Juveniles in Adult Jails and PrisonsIn Texas, Certified juveniles ages 14-17 are required to be confined in:

Adult county jails, while awaiting trial, usually in isolation for a year or more Adult prisons, after conviction

In adult prisons and jails, juveniles face vastly higher risks of: suicide sexual assault physical assault mental illness

Limited access to effective therapeutic interventions, education, specialized staff, and age-appropriate services

Public Safety Concerns

Center for Disease Control: transferring juveniles to the adult system is counter-productive as a strategy for preventing or reducing violence

one study found that transferred juveniles who served at least a year in adult prison had a 100% greater risk of violent recidivism

TDCJ Youthful Offender Program (YOP)

Designed to keep juveniles separate from adults Provides some limited therapeutic programming Minimal opportunities for females Inadequate educational, vocational, and recreational opportunities for youth

Only 68% of the 14 17 year olds are in the YOP

32% of 14 17 year olds in TDCJ are in:--state jails--transfer facilities--administrative segregation--medical and mental health facilities

where they receive NO specialized programming and can be co-mingled with adult offenders

Compare to Programs at TYCDeterminate Sentence youth can participate in Capital and Serious Violent Offenders Program (95% success rate) Sex Offender Treatment Program (94% success rate) Educational classes (96% participation rate, compared to 38% in YOP) Special education Basic treatment services for all youth

Other advantages of juvenile facilities Specialized staff and age-appropriate services No co-mingling with adult offenders No long-term isolation

ConclusionsData breaks down the common myths about which juveniles get transferred to the adult system

Not the worst of the worstmany are first-time offenders, are charged with non-violent offenses, and have no prior violent criminal history Certified youth are almost identical to those retained in the juvenile system in terms of criminalityVast majority of certified juveniles have never been through the toughest options in the juvenile system Not a case of nothing works; rather nothing has been tried Certified youth miss out on effective rehabilitative programs and school in juvenile system Determinate sentencing option is flexibleholds youth accountable while protecting public safety with potentially long sentencesAdult jails and prisons are a poor fit for juveniles Increases violent recidivism Puts youth at extreme risk

Policy Recommendations Limit certification to the most serious and violent offenses, so that it is truly for the worst of the worst

Confine certified juveniles in juvenile detention facilities instead of adult jails while they await trial

Confine certified juveniles in TYC instead of adult prison until age 19, then transfer to prison to complete sentence

Protect public safety by allowing a juvenile judge to order a 19-year old to complete rehabilitative programming in TYC prior to release

Seek ways to keep more youth in the juvenile system

Relevant Legislation

HB 3351 (Turner) and HB 3698 (Gallego) Limits certification to serious and violent offenses

HB 3350 (Turner) Allows a juvenile judge to order a 19 y/o determinate sentence youth to complete rehabilitative programming in TYC prior to release

SB 1209 (Whitmire) and CSHB 3303 (Marquez) At county option, certified juveniles can be held in juvenile detention center rather than adult jail while awaiting trial

SB 1208 (Whitmire) Extends term for determinate sentence probation to age 19 to keep lower-risk youth in juvenile system

For More Information:Michele Deitch, J.D., M.Sc.Senior Lecturer, LBJ School of Public AffairsMichele.Deitch@mail.utexas.edu512-328-8330

****To download full report, visit:http://www.utexas.edu/lbj/news/2011/juvenile-justice-report

***Currently, there are about 229 juveniles between the ages of 14 17 who were certified as adults last year. A figure that has had some variation, especially in 2008 following the problems in TYC, but is generally fairly stable.

The chart shows that juvenile judges have been certifying more juveniles than they place in TYC on DS. Lately, it is almost 100 % more.**Chart looks at the 10 counties responsible for the most certifications in the state

Harris County has certified more than twice as many cases over a 4-year period than any other county, and more than the next 6 counties combined

Note that Travis County (the 5th largest county) and El Paso (the 7th largest county) do not appear in the chart, telling us that the decision to transfer kids to adult court is a policy decision at the county or judicial level and not inevitable based on the size of the county.

Also note the extremely large discrepancy between use of DS and certification in 6 counties (Harris, Jefferson, Hidalgo, Nueces, Lubbock, and Potter), suggesting possible disproportionate efforts to try juveniles as adults in these counties.Next, we compared the two groups ***************