A plan backed by state Rep. Matt Hall to end the policy requiring all 17-year-olds to be treated as adults in Michigan’s criminal justice system is on its way to the governor’s desk.

Hall said Michigan is one of just four states still requiring all 17-year-olds to be prosecuted as adults – even those who commit the most minor offenses. He said eliminating this harmful and ineffective practice will help rehabilitate young offenders and reduce the likelihood of them breaking the law again in the future.

“Many people, including myself, have made mistakes in the past. My experiences helped me learn to take responsibility for my actions, develop healthy stress management behaviors, and become a better person,” said Hall, of Marshall. “Rather than throwing high school juniors and seniors in prison to live with hardened adult felons, we should be looking for ways to help them turn their lives around. The juvenile justice system has better resources to help troubled teens address their problems with support from their families.”

Including 17-year-olds in the juvenile system has been shown to reduce reoffending by 34 percent, according to the Centers for Disease Control.

The plan backed by Hall would raise the age at which individuals are considered adults for the purposes of prosecuting and adjudicating criminal offenses, allowing 17-year-olds to be treated as minors in most circumstances beginning Oct. 1, 2021. Prosecutors will continue to have discretion, allowing them to waive minors who commit violent crimes into the adult system when appropriate.

The measure also includes a funding plan to ensure local communities do not incur any additional costs associated with keeping 17-year-old offenders in the juvenile system, which is administered at the local level. Funding was the key sticking point that halted similar reform efforts in the past.

Hall said the reform is expected to improve public safety and save public tax dollars over time. Connecticut, Illinois and Massachusetts are among the states that have experienced millions of dollars in savings and decreases in the number of reoffending youths after raising the age of juvenile court jurisdiction to 18.

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