On Sunday, November 3, the Albuquerque Journal published the following guest editorial submitted by Bernalillo County District Attorney Sam Bregman
HEADLINE: “Childrens Code Must Be Overhauled, Updated To Address Alarming Stats On Juvenile Crime”
Juvenile crime in Bernalillo County and across the country is currently at unacceptable levels. Specifically, juveniles committing violent crimes with guns — it is the one thing that keeps me up at night.
Earlier this month, I was at the sentencing of Josef Toney, who was sentenced to 45 years in prison. He was just 15 years old when he killed two young mothers in an attempted armed robbery.
There are far too many stories like Josef Toney’s and there are far too many victims and people who have been killed by juveniles in our community. Those victims of violence and their families have had their lives destroyed. The juvenile’s life is now likely ruined as well.
Here are some statistics that highlight this dangerous situation. Since January 2023, when I became district attorney, there have been more than 1,400 juvenile cases referred to our office. We have charged a staggering 24 juveniles with murder; there have been 374 cases involving juveniles with guns; 48 armed robberies; 42 rapes; and 65 cases where kids have been charged with shooting at or from a motor vehicle or dwelling.
From 2022 to 2023, there was a 57% increase in cases referred to our office that involved kids with guns. So far in 2024, we already have 119 felony juvenile cases involving a firearm.
These alarming statistics on juvenile crime ultimately draw attention to our state’s existing juvenile laws: The Children’s Code.
New Mexico’s Children’s Code was last updated in the previous century. This was over 30 years ago; before the iPhone was even invented. After seeing clear trends of escalating violence among our youth and witnessing every day how our juvenile justice system is not working, the Bernalillo County District Attorney’s Office took it upon ourselves to do a thorough review of the Children’s Code.
We have completed that review and have developed a comprehensive rewrite of the Children’s Code, focusing on the Delinquency Act. Along with these efforts, we have also implemented policies within the office to address the issue of kids with guns. For instance, if a juvenile is caught with a firearm and charged, this office will not consider any plea discussions unless and until the juvenile discloses where they got the gun. As a result of this policy, our office has learned that a majority of juveniles are getting firearms on the dark web.
We have also taken preventative measures where we can. I have personally visited more than a dozen schools and talked to thousands of students about the consequences of gun violence.
Our efforts alone, however, will not end juvenile gun violence. Working together, as a community and a government, will make a difference, though. The intention of updating the Children’s Code is not to unreasonably or unjustly punish juveniles. I will emphasize again; we do not want to throw away the key when it comes to juveniles.
In fact, to the contrary, we want to ensure there are measures in place where there is accountability and there are consequences when juveniles first enter the criminal justice system. We no longer want their first consequence to be when they are charged and sentenced for murder.
For this important upcoming 2025 legislative session, we are asking the Legislature to consider making 36 changes to the Children’s Code. These are a few of our priorities:
The first priority is to expand the list of crimes where we can charge a juvenile as an adult. Currently, the only crime you can charge a juvenile as an adult is first degree murder. We want to expand that to include: second degree murder, voluntary manslaughter, criminal sexual penetration — rape, armed robbery with the use of a firearm, shooting at or from a motor vehicle causing great bodily harm or death, and shooting at dwelling or occupied building causing great bodily harm or death.
These are violent, adult crimes. Those who commit these crimes should be treated as such.
Our second priority is extending jurisdiction for juveniles to 25 years of age. As the law is currently written, once a juvenile offender turns 21, in most cases, the criminal justice system automatically loses jurisdiction. Extending jurisdiction to age 25 would provide more time for these young people to get the treatment and supervision they need, while also monitoring the progress they are making.
This additional supervision will be life-changing for many young people in our community. As an example, this year our office formed a Gun Team focusing on gun crimes involving 18- to 25-year-olds. In just six months, this team launched more than 100 cases, many offenders with an existing juvenile record. Extending juvenile jurisdiction to 25 would be another tool to help prevent future crime and ensure young people are on the right track.
Our third priority is to allow juvenile records to be used during any adult conditions of release or sentencing hearing without having to obtain a court order to unseal the records. Every judge has the right to know and consider if the person in front of them has a violent past when determining conditions of release or sentencing. This change would allow for additional information to be heard and considered and will ultimately promote public safety.
Another priority is filling a gap in the law when it comes to teens with guns. Right now, it is illegal for anyone under the age of 19 to be in possession of a handgun. However, it is not illegal for anyone under the age of 19 to possess an assault rifle. We propose addressing this discrepancy by updating language from “handgun” to “firearm,” which will include assault rifles. We also propose increasing the penalty for this crime from a misdemeanor to a fourth-degree felony.
Other proposed amendments will include moving a person to an adult facility once they reach the age of 18. I believe that when a juvenile convicted of a violent crime turns 18, they should go to an adult facility because we do not want an 18-year-old in custody with a 13-year-old.
Our office also believes in transparency. The public has the right to know what is happening in juvenile court and in our criminal justice system. Currently, due to statutory boundaries, as a public office we are limited in sharing certain information, even when it comes to violent juvenile offenders.
We propose changing that and informing the public about what is going on in their communities. We are not talking about kids stealing bubblegum; we are talking about young people committing violent crimes. Again, the public has the right to know.
Addressing and preventing violent juvenile crime is not something that we can do by ourselves – not the district attorney’s office, not the Legislature, and not the executive. The entire community and state must make juvenile crime a priority during the upcoming 2025 legislative session.
It will take everybody’s involvement and collaboration to work through this terrible problem, for the safety of our community and the safety of our children.
The link to a related Dinelli blog article is here: