In April 2017, Governor Andrew Cuomo signed into law a bill that raised the age of criminal responsibility in New York State from sixteen to eighteen. As a result, thousands of young people will have their cases heard in Family Court instead of in the adult criminal justice system.
This landmark policy change brought with it myriad implications for the operation of New York City’s juvenile justice system. To support implementation planning and ensure compliance ahead of the October 1, 2018 deadline set in the state law, the Mayor’s Office of Criminal Justice (MOCJ) engaged Bennett Midland to craft a plan of action to guide the successful transformation of its justice operations.
Our team worked fervently with the Mayor’s Office to plan, staff, and manage the Raise the Age Implementation Task Force, providing relevant research and analysis, meeting planning and facilitation, consensus-building among stakeholders in both the criminal and Family Court systems, and real-time documentation to help the City operate a best-in-class juvenile justice system. We continued our work with MOCJ in the months following implementation to understand the results of the new legislation, including overall impact on the justice system and the families it serves.