National News
Group call for youth offenders to be given citations instead of criminal records
December 23, 2015 posted by Steve Brownstein
Through song, chants and prayer, dozens of people gathered at the Jacksonville Landing Monday to bring awareness to a problem they say plagues thousands of youth and adults across the state of Florida.
Pastor Tan Moss of Greater Grant Memorial AME Church said the gathering was to encourage lawmakers to file legislation that would prevent youth from being arrested for committing minor offenses and instead given civil citations.
Moss said the citation would allow youth to go through diversion programs that allow the charges to be dropped and avoids them having a criminal record.
"When kids go through the criminal justice system they are more likely to recommit than when they go through a neighborhood accountability board or some other type of diversion program. Primarily because that program holds you accountable. That program teaches them the impact of what they've done. It gives the victim a voice, so that the victim can really express to them how that crime impacted them. Which teaches them empathy," Moss said.
According to Moss, 12,000 youth were arrested in Florida for minor offenses in 2015.
Moss pleaded to Florida Representative Charles McBurney to join with the group to get the bill filed.
"They've given us assurance that they are working on [the bill] but we just want to make sure that they partner with us and that we get it filed before the deadline," Moss added.
The bill must be filed by January 8th.
