In Texas, for the most part, the law recognizes a difference between kids and adults. We don't let 14-year-olds get a driver's license, for example, or join the Texas State Guard or vote. We do, however, make a disturbing exception in the law: Texas will send a 14-year-old who commits a felony to adult court, jail, and prison.
Research shows that housing a youth with other adults increases that child's chances of facing assault and attempting suicide—risks that are minimized, by contrast, in a juvenile facility. Youth exposed to adult inmates also are more likely to become more violent and to escalate their criminal activity following release, compared to youth in juvenile settings.
How does Texas allow kids to end up in the adult system? The Texas Family Code authorizes juvenile court judges to waive their jurisdiction of a case and transfer a child to criminal court. Transferring a child to criminal court is also known as certifying the child as an adult. Once considered an adult, a child is subject to the adult offender's sentencing and sanctioning rules. What's more, Texas has a "once an adult, always an adult” policy, meaning all juveniles previously certified as adults and convicted must be criminally prosecuted for all subsequent offenses.
If judges believe these youthful offenders deserve to be tried as adults, surely the crimes they commit are the most heinous, right? Not necessarily. According to the Texas Juvenile Probation Commission, from 2005 to 2009, fewer than 1 in 5 youth certified as adults committed homicides. The same goes for sexual assaults. Robbery is the most common offense to lead to adult certification, but property crimes and drug offenses have also qualified youth for certification.
Juvenile certifications are more prominent in Texas' largest counties; Harris, Dallas, and Bexar Counties make up the top three. Harris County certifies more juveniles than the next five largest counties in Texas combined. As reported in an award-winning 2009 Houston Press article, Harris County certified an average of 89 juveniles every year for the past 12 years and over 800 youth since 1999.
When faced with a child who commits a serious offense, a juvenile court judge has options other than to certify that youth as an adult. Texas offers a determinate or blended sentencing scheme—a sentence that combines time served in the juvenile and criminal justice systems. In lieu of certification and possible time in an adult jail or prison, a youth may be sent to the Texas Youth Commission which offers treatment programs tailored to adolescent needs. If the youth excels in the juvenile justice system, a judge can release the youth into the community on adult parole as opposed to sending him or her to an adult facility.
A determinate sentence is not a 100% guarantee Texas kids will be kept out of adult prisons. However, it is one step toward acknowledging that certifying a child as an adult is not the best solution for Texas or our youth. Giving judges the opportunity to review a youth certified as an adult again at the age of 19 would give more kids an opportunity to receive adequate treatment. The chance for judicial review is the very least the state can do to protect its youth from possible harm in the adult system and reduce the risk to communities from putting children in a setting that increases the odds they will commit more crimes later in life.
