Lowering Age At Which A Minor May Be Tried As Adult for Certain Criminal Offenses in District of Columbia

Floor Speech

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Mr. JACKSON of Illinois. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong opposition to H.R. 5140, the D.C. Juvenile Sentencing Reform Act. This bill is not a serious attempt to address crime; it is a regressive, discriminatory, and counterproductive piece of legislation that will only worsen the challenges facing our communities.

This bill would lower the age at which children can be prosecuted as adults in Washington, D.C., from 16 to 14 years old for certain crimes. This will also have the impact of reducing the minimum age for transferring a juvenile to adult court to be tried as an adult. House Republicans from three states--South Dakota, Alaska, and California-- voted to reduce the age to 14 in D.C., even though the age is 16 in their own states. The supporters of this bill claim it will make D.C. safer, but the facts and history prove otherwise.

First, let's talk about the discriminatory nature of this proposal. The juvenile justice system in Washington. D.C., already has stark racial disparities: more than 93 percent of youth arrests in the first half of 2025 were of Black youth. Lowering the age for adult prosecution will inevitably push more Black children into the adult system, a system that is not equipped to rehabilitate them.

Furthermore, this proposal stands in direct opposition to what we know about juvenile justice and public safety. Research from the CDC and the National Research Council has consistently found that transferring juveniles to the adult system increases violence rather than reducing it. Youth charged as adults are more likely to reoffend than those processed in juvenile courts. This is not a deterrent; it is a recipe for a cycle of violence and incarceration.

This bill would make Washington, D.C., an outlier in its approach to juvenile justice. While the current law already allows prosecutors to charge 16 and 17 year-olds as adults at their discretion, without a judge's approval, H.R. 5140 would lower that age even further.

Even in states with a history of tough-on-crime stances, many are moving in a more rehabilitative direction.

This approach aligns with a broader national trend, including in several Republican-led states, to reform juvenile justice with a focus on rehabilitation rather than punishment. For example, Texas, a state known for its traditionally tough stance on crime, has undertaken significant reforms since 2007. These reforms have focused on encouraging local, evidence-based supervision for low-level youth offenders, which has led to a significant reduction in the state-level committed population and millions of dollars in cost savings while protecting public safety. Juvenile arrests in Texas dropped by 27 percent between 2007 and 2011 following these changes.

Similarly, in Utah, Republican Governor Gary Herbert signed a comprehensive set of reforms in 2017 with near-unanimous support from the Republican-led legislature. These reforms have also reduced reliance on locked detention by diverting more young people into community-based programs. Early outcomes from these changes show that the use of locked detention has fallen significantly, while the use of diversion is on the rise.

Even in Georgia, another state that has historically had a lower age for adult prosecution, there has been a movement to extend the juvenile justice system. In 2022, the state passed a bill to raise the adult criminal age from 17 to 18 for most crimes, recognizing that this provides adolescents with better opportunities for rehabilitation.

This bill would make Washington, D.C., an outlier. While the current law already allows prosecutors to charge 16 and 17 year-olds as adults at their discretion, without a judge's approval, H.R. 5140 would lower that age even further. In contrast, many states are moving in the opposite direction, raising the age of juvenile jurisdiction, not lowering it.

Real solutions to violent crime do not come from sending middle schoolers to adult court. They come from investing in communities. They come from supporting our schools, expanding after-school programs, providing job training, and ensuring access to mental health services.

I urge my colleagues to reject this misguided and dangerous bill. Vote No on H.R. 5140.

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