Assemblyman Matt Simpson (R,C-Horicon) joined his legislative colleagues and local district attorneys today in the Capitol for a press conference to call for reform of the “Raise the Age” (RTA) law. The law, passed in 2018, raised the age at which an individual can be prosecuted as an adult from 16 to 18 years old, thereby enabling young offenders who commit serious felonies to escape criminal liability by being transferred to family court where records are sealed and are not accessible to judges in criminal court.

“Raise the Age is a direct contributor to New York’s increase in crime and a complete dismissal of public safety. Under this law, people who have committed felonies are treated as first-time offenders endlessly, which only affirms the criminals’ behavior to continue as no real consequences are given. New York should be setting up kids for success, not a life of repeat crime, which Raise the Age encourages,” said Simpson.

The Department of Criminal Justice Services found that in 2021, only 9% of adolescent offenders who were arrested for a felony received a felony conviction, those include:

• 112 arrested for homicide;
• 80 arrested for sex offenses;
• 587 arrested for firearms/dangerous weapon offenses;
• 691 arrested for robbery and 213 for burglary; and
• 20 arrested for making a terroristic threat.

“The fact that you can get away with committing such heinous crimes in this state is not acceptable. The lack of accountability that Raise the Age authorizes is not good for the community, the police force or first responders, and, in fact, makes it easier to exploit adolescents to be used as pawns for criminal activity because they have immunity. It’s time to amend this law and bring safety back to our communities and for the victims of these crimes,” Simpson said.