17-05-2025
Louisiana AG wants juvenile ‘change of venue' bill, Caddo DA and judges do not
SHREVEPORT, La. (KTAL/KMSS) – Caddo Parish District Attorney James E. Stewart, Sr., is asking lawmakers to reconsider a bill that would allow district attorneys' offices around the state to send juvenile proceedings to district court judges for trials and hearings.
Senate Bill 74, sponsored by Senator Alan Seabaugh and heavily supported by the Louisiana Attorney General's Office, would allow for a venue change if prosecutors believe that the juvenile courts cannot properly prosecute certain youth offenses. DA Stewart said in his opinion that the state is trying to legislate a chronic issue in New Orleans through an unnecessary statewide measure.
In March, voters rejected a similar ballot initiative that called for expanding offenses for which a juvenile could be charged as an adult. During a Senate Criminal Justice Committee hearing, Seabaugh was adamant that SB 74 is not the same legislation as the failed amendment. He said this bill is strictly about venue.
DA Stewart objects to proposed Senate bill related to juvenile court hearings, procecutions
'This bill supposedly is going to change what we call 'venue'. And it would allow certain juvenile cases to be heard in district court using the children's code rule, but by district court, judges, it's it's a solution to to a problem that's not there,' Stewart said.
Proponents of the bill say it provides more discretion over where a juvenile trial can occur, but the district attorney already has some discretion over 15-year-old offenders.
'We can transfer that jurisdiction from juvenile court to adult court so they are treated like adults,' Stewart explained.
The list includes, rape, homicide, car jacking, armed robbery violent all violent felonies. Within SB74, there are additional offenses, including burglary and battery, that would be included and on the table for transfer to district court.
Seabaugh's assertion that the bill is strictly about venue may be true, but the game changes when youth offenders enter the court system. Changing the venue of juvenile hearings would change how the district court operates when the Louisiana Children's Code is in place. Juvenile court cases are not public like adult criminal trials. No spectators or media are allowed, and only necessary parties are allowed in the courtroom. Youth prosecutions are also expedited, requiring law enforcement, crime labs, court dockets, and other involved stakeholders to move quickly, without violating the code.
Watch: Confronting the Plague of Juvenile Crime
'As of right now, the district court judges don't have to use the Children's Code. They use the criminal code or procedure, which is for adults. They would have to figure out the nuances of the children's code for the few times that you switch from one situation to the other,' Stewart said.
The most significant difference between criminal district courts and juvenile courts is that the juvenile justice process is meant to be restorative, while criminal court is intended to be punitive. Another is the privacy of juvenile processes, which are primarily intended to protect young people who made poor decisions but can still turn their lives around through the interventions that the juvenile system provides.
'What people really don't understand is that support services, juvenile services. The Office of Juvenile Justice, truancy, Volunteers for Youth Justice, and the drug court. The mental courts are all set up in juvenile court. And how you're going to use them in two different places,' Stewart said. 'There are just a lot of little, small things that make juvenile court work, that we would have problems with if you attempted to move venue.
Deputy AG Larry Freiman said the bill is needed because the increase in violent offenses committed by juveniles is exhausting a system that was created to handle fights, family trouble, truancy, and other non-violent crimes. The rise of youth engaged in shootouts, carjacking, robberies, and homicides is growing in a way that the current system is ill-equipped to handle.
'If the DA feels that their juvenile judges are doing a great job, then they don't have to move it. But if they think a case warrants it, they can,' Freiman said during the hearing.
'You know, our CDC (criminal district court) is full of dockets. We're trying to move as many cases as fast as possible. And changing gears, it's not well thought of. Fortunately, in Caddo, we have a separate juvenile court that could deal with all juvenile matters, and they do a good job of dealing with it. So it's really not necessary to transfer those cases for venue purposes and create a whole hybrid system here when you have, too much work already to be done.'
On Monday, SB74 was brought before the Senate Finance Committee, which explored the bill's cost, which Senator Seabaugh said was negligible at best. He testified that the bill would have no state general fund impact. He did note that local areas may see a slight increase while some may see a decrease, 'But neither is determinable. The fiscal note would be zero or indeterminable.'
Baton Rouge Public Defenders' Office testified during the hearing, explaining to lawmakers that the bill would strain her office's personnel and finances. Her testimony sparked a discussion that ultimately led to the bill's deferment.
Caddo Parish Juvenile Court Judges testified that Caddo District Court is already 'begging for judges' and that the bill would require a separate section and probation staff.
One retired Caddo juvenile judge explained that criminal district court judges know nothing about the children's code and that getting them up to speed on the differences will involve training costs. He also foreboded 'the harm to come' while that real-time training is happening.
Ultimately, Seabaugh voluntarily deferred the bill while the fiscal note is amended, which he said he doesn't anticipate will change much despite the testimony otherwise.
DA Stewart said he is still willing to work with lawmakers and other stakeholders on real solutions and interventions to prevent young people from committing crimes, rather than knee-jerk reactions that lead to legislation that will stress an already stressed system.
'I know some people are interested in it, but then you get sidetracked with bills like this, where you're dealing with other issues. I mean, really, the problem is the juvenile court or truancy. So you need some kind of support for choices. Then you have delinquents, they come out of the Department of Juvenile Justice, and they don't have the support systems to get them back in school to teach them or treat or make them be successful, young people, before they ever get into the adult system,' Stewart said.
The bill will be returned to the Senate Finance Committee on Monday, May 19.
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