Lawmakers advance ‘public safety' package allowing detention of Nebraskans as young as 11

Yahoo

02-05-2025

State Sen. Carolyn Bosn of Lincoln. Feb. 22, 2024. (Zach Wendling/Nebraska Examiner)
LINCOLN — After debate that spilled into three days, Nebraska lawmakers on Thursday advanced a bundle of 'public safety' proposals highlighted by a contentious provision to lower the age at which a Nebraska youth can be detained — to 11 years old.
The age drop was backed by Gov. Jim Pillen and originally included in a bill by Ralston State Sen. Merv Riepe, which did not fully make it out of committee but did, in part, emerge in the bundle now known as Legislative Bill 530.
Segments of at least nine bills were folded into the megabill before the Legislature's Judiciary Committee moved it to the floor for full debate. Lawmakers advanced it 33-0, with 16 senators marking present not voting, to move the package to final reading.
The vote came after committee chair, Lincoln State Sen. Carolyn Bosn, agreed to continue negotiations with Democratic lawmakers who view the juvenile justice elements as overly punitive. Several have said prevention and rehabilitation services are more effective when dealing with young people whose brains are still developing.
'It costs more to imprison our kids,' said State Sen. Ashlei Spivey of Omaha. 'Juveniles have the most chance for rehabilitation … We should be investing in resources and not detaining fifth graders.'
Bosn, a former prosecutor, views the overall package as one that promotes public safety and better re-directs juveniles who have veered into trouble.
'The public has the right to feel safe in their communities while juveniles also have the right to be set up for success. I think this threads that needle perfectly.'
While the Riepe proposal to reduce the minimum detention age from 13 to 11 stirred the most objection, the Ralston lawmaker noted that another previously contentious element was not included in the larger package. That piece would have lowered the age at which a teen could be charged as an adult for serious felonies, from 14 to 12.
He reiterated his stance that the younger age was necessary due to a rise in serious violent offenses by younger kids, and said he relied on information from the Douglas County sheriff and attorney. The goal, Riepe said, is to 'intercept a cycle, step in before it's too late.'
State Sen. Terrell McKinney said juvenile crime has gone down overall. He said the Omaha mayor has campaigned on less crime in the city. 'Where's the research, where's the data?' he asked Riepe.
Riepe's LB 556, during a March 13 public hearing, garnered support from a Pillen representative and seven others, while 28 testified in opposition. In addition, 115 wrote in opposition while two people submitted letters of support.
Thursday's vote prompted a statement from the ACLU of Nebraska, Voices for Children and RISE, which supports people transitioning out of incarceration. The groups criticized amendments that expanded felony offenses as well as the proposed drop in the minimum age for detention.
They noted that among the reasons a preteen could be detained, under the proposed legislation, is if the youth exhibited signs of self-harm.
Detention facilities are not mental health or healthcare facilities or safe havens. Our children deserve better.'
– Jasmine Harris of RISE
'Expanding felonies, harshening penalties and detaining children as young as 11 will not build safer or stronger communities,' said Jason Witmer, policy fellow with the ACLU Nebraska. 'LB 530 is very clearly still a step backward on smart criminal and juvenile justice policy.'
Jasmine Harris, director of public policy at RISE, said preteens should be receiving attention that addresses underlying mental, behavioral and environmental conditions that put them in touch with the juvenile justice system.
'Detention facilities are not mental health or healthcare facilities or safe havens,' she said in a statement. 'Our children deserve better.'
Spivey sought unsuccessfully to strike a few provisions in the package — including one she said demonized Black youth — but said she was hopeful negotiations would continue with Judiciary Committee leaders before the final lawmaking step.
Among her failed amendments was one to eliminate creation of a 'high-risk juvenile probationer' category that Spivey said would be viewed as a 'super predator' group. She said it would open the door to harsher sentencing and disproportionate harm to youths of color.
Another part of LB 684 that remained despite Spivey's protest requires the Office of Probation to generate a list of all juveniles on probation in each county by the first day of the month and then provide it to each law enforcement agency in that county.
'It is unnecessary over-surveillance of those young people,' she said, adding that law enforcement already has access to such information.
Spivey was able to garner enough votes to stop the elevation of a penalty if a youth on probation tampers with the young person's electronic monitoring device. Spivey said the offense would, for now, remain a misdemeanor versus a felony.
State Sen. John Cavanaugh of Omaha criticized the package as 'logrolling' questionably related bills that were too wide-ranging. He said it creates confusion for constituents, who might wonder why their elected official doesn't support a certain program that is wrapped up in the package.
State Sen. Kathleen Kauth of Omaha introduced the underlying LB 530 as 'public safety' legislation that aims partly to raise fines for speeding violations and to change the law to help 'vulnerable road users.'
Among other bills folded into the package:
LB 6, introduced by Bosn and aimed at fentanyl poisoning, calls for enhanced penalties when the person using the controlled substance dies or sustains serious injury.
LB 44, by McKinney, allows individuals to file for post-conviction relief up until the age of 21 if the conviction occurred as a minor.
LB 124, by State Sen. Rick Holdcroft of Bellevue, would match a drunken driver's penalty for motor vehicle homicide of an unborn child to the penalty that drunken driver would get for motor vehicle homicide.
LB 395, by State Sen. Barry DeKay of Niobrara, would allow police access to a sealed juvenile record when someone applies for a concealed handgun permit.
LB 404, by State Sen. Robert Hallstrom of Syracuse, authorizes courts to extend a term of probation upon a joint application from the probation officer and the person on probation.
LB 600, by State Sen. Wendy DeBoer of Omaha, authorizes the Department of Transportation to temporarily reduce speed limits on highways under specific conditions such as adverse weather or a traffic congestion.
LB 684, by State Sen. Eliot Bostar of Lincoln, was essentially gutted and replaced by a series of juvenile justice measures, including the lowering of the age at which a youth could be detained in a facility. Bosn said the Judiciary Committee sees the measures as ways to 'improve accountability for juveniles and transparency for law enforcement.' Spivey said the measures were among the most concerning in the package.
SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX