Children as young as 10 could potentially go to court for auto thefts and handgun violations, under one proposal key Democratic lawmakers detailed and plan to push for in the legislature.
Worried by spikes in youth crime, Maryland lawmakers close in on more fixes to the system
ANNAPOLIS, Md. — Almost two years after passing landmark youth justice reform, Maryland lawmakers are scrutinizing its impact on young offenders – and questioning whether they’ve done enough to make things better. The 2022 reforms were meant to help more…
Problems persist in juvenile services schooling 2 years after transfer from education department
Two years after the Maryland General Assembly transferred responsibility for incarcerated students’ education from the state Education Department to an independent school board within the Juvenile Services Department, students confined in Maryland’s secure youth facilities continue to face multiple long-standing challenges.
Maryland Republicans pledge to ‘restore balance’ with public safety agenda
The package would increase penalties for gun theft and violent firearms offenses, authorize law enforcement to search vehicles based on the smell of cannabis alone and limit eligibility for bail or reduced sentences for those charged with or convicted of violent crimes.
Mental health center takes aim at patients’ long wait for crisis care
Patients wait an average of three hours and 48 minutes for mental health care in Maryland emergency rooms, according to Dr. Norvell Coots, the president and CEO of Holy Cross Health.
Youth crime process prompts questions in House, Eastern Shore
Lawmakers expressed concern that current law offers no solutions when youth and families do not participate in recommended services or when services fail to prevent young people from continuing to break the law.
Attorney general, public defender launch collaborative to address inequity in incarceration
The state’s top prosecutor and defense attorney united Wednesday behind an effort to end inequities in incarceration – which Attorney General Anthony Brown described as among “the worst in the United States of America” – with a partnership including state…
Juvenile services department to move detained girls, again
Maryland’s Department of Juvenile Services will relocate girls awaiting court hearings or long-term placement this month from a single unit of the Cheltenham Youth Detention Center to a center that will house all girls in the agency’s residential care.
Legal aid clinic offers job, expungement help as new laws expand eligibility
Albert Gary loved working as a bouncer. “People got to know me. I got to know people,” said Gary, 39, of Baltimore. Now, he said, he misses the work, because well-paying nightclub security positions have increasingly required guards to carry firearms, and his criminal record prevents him from getting a license to carry.
Food banks, feeding programs gird for federal shutdown’s impact
Food banks and pantries statewide are already straining to fill the gap from the end of COVID benefits. A government shutdown could create even more demand.