As current and former prosecutors, we must speak out when the actions of elected officials undermine the health and well-being of our communities. Unfortunately, the recent veto of criminal justice bills by Gov. Glenn Youngkin did just that.
In total, the governor vetoed 22 bills that would have improved policing or criminal justice in Virginia. And in doing so he parted company with research-based reforms that are working around the country.
Perhaps most concerning was the veto of a bill that would have restricted prosecutors from pursuing charges for kids under the age of 11 and allowed judges to provide services and support to children without involving them in the juvenile justice system.
This bill aligned Virginia with most states and other parts of the world recognizing that criminalizing children 10 and under makes no sense as a public safety measure. Medical science has long established that youth are different from adults in terms of brain development, culpability, impressionability, impulsivity and understanding of crime.
A troubled child needs treatment, not incarceration
The neuroscience of human brain development is so well established that the U.S. Supreme Court has long held that youth under the age of 18 must be treated differently by our criminal law.
Indeed, cutting edge science is now recognizing that people 25 and younger should be treated differently by the courts.
As law enforcement professionals and parents, we find it unfathomable that anyone believes criminally prosecuting a child in elementary school is beneficial. A child who can barely read needs treatment, not incarceration, and there are countless ways to address accountability and also get that child the necessary support to thrive and grow without involving a courtroom or prosecutor.
How can we prevent child abuse? Tougher rules for home-school families would help.
The only outcome of putting any young person – much less a 10-year-old – in the criminal legal system is further trauma and exacerbating the very issues underlying the misconduct. And these results inevitably erode the safety of our communities.
Simply put, the veto of this important bill is a moral, practical and political failing of adults in Virginia perpetrated on our children and their future.
Youngkin claimed that by removing the threat of prosecution for young kids, the floodgates would open for gang members to recruit children to carry out gang-related offenses. Yet the bill would have given more protections to both children and the community by criminalizing adults who willfully encourage or cause a child to engage in delinquent acts.
Moreover, we know from the experience of other states who already protect children under 11 from prosecution that the threat of gang members finding new recruits on elementary school playgrounds is simply not based in reality.
Criminal justice reforms address drug cases, policing shortages
One other unfortunate veto further diminishes public safety by undermining proven harm reduction strategies and inhibiting prosecutorial discretion in drug cases, while another prevents communities from ensuring a broad base of applicants interested in joining law enforcement offices.
The governor derailed reforms that would have allowed prosecutors to file a misdemeanor instead of a felony charge if a person is caught with residue of a drug – with the key exception of fentanyl, which remained a felony.
Youngkin claimed the bill diminishes “the seriousness of drug offenses.” Yet mandating a felony conviction for possessing a barely traceable quantity of a drug imposes harsh and life-altering consequences for individuals as well as their loved ones that outweigh any “benefit” the governor can claim.
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A felony conviction hampers job prospects and prevents people from accessing essential services such as low-income housing. It’s hard to see how that punishment fits the crime.
We also know that the failed “war on drugs” approach of felony convictions for drug possession, let alone residue, does not deter or address the underlying problems that lead to problematic drug use.
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Meanwhile, he dealt a blow to police departments across the state.
As law enforcement agencies are experiencing a massive staffing shortage, Youngkin vetoed a bill that would have allowed recipients of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, or DACA, to be eligible for jobs in law enforcement. The bill would have helped address personnel shortages while giving people brought here illegally as children a chance to serve their communities.
In vetoing the bill, the governor decided to sacrifice safety and eliminate a path to upward economic mobility to stoke fear over immigration.
Youngkin has vetoed more bills in one session than any other Virginian governor in modern history, but his sweeping and questionable actions have generated little backlash aside from remarks from the Democratic lawmakers who sponsored these bills.
Many seem resigned to the fact that this is how politics operates, with one party vetoing meaningful bills passed by the opposing party.
Yet we cannot afford to be complacent with such decisions, nor can we accept leaders’ unwillingness to embrace effective, data-based policies. We must demand our leaders put people over politics.
Parisa Dehghani-Tafti is the commonwealth’s attorney for Arlington County and Falls Church city, Virginia. Jim Hingeley is the commonwealth’s attorney for Albemarle County. Miriam Krinsky is the executive director of Fair and Just Prosecution, a former federal prosecutor and the author of “Change from Within: Reimagining the 21st-Century Prosecutor.”
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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Youngkin plays politics with public safety. His vetoes will hurt kids