Bill > H1554

This bill proposes several key changes to the juvenile offender law in Massachusetts: 1. It raises the age of juvenile jurisdiction from 18 to 19 years old. 2. It provides that juveniles convicted of murder in the first or second degree committed between the ages of 16 and 19 will be sentenced as adults, but will be given a "meaningful opportunity to obtain release on parole based on demonstrated maturity and rehabilitation." 3. It establishes a process for evaluating the competency of juveniles to stand trial, with a rebuttable presumption that children under 13 are incompetent. The court must order an evaluation by a qualified examiner and hold a competency hearing if the issue is raised. Incompetent juveniles must receive services to restore their competency. 4. It requires the parole board to grant parole permits at a prisoner's first parole eligibility and subsequent reviews, unless clear and convincing evidence shows the prisoner will reoffend. The board must give substantial weight to the diminished culpability and subsequent rehabilitation of prisoners convicted of murder under age 19.

Justice

https://malegislature.gov/Bills/193/H1554