Today, Governor Roy Cooper vetoed the following bill:
- House Bill 834: Juvenile Justice Modifications.
Governor Cooper made the following statement on his veto of HB 834:
"Most violent crimes, even when committed by teenagers, should be handled in adult court. However, there are cases where sentences would be more effective and appropriate to the severity of the crime for teenagers if they were handled in juvenile court, making communities safer. This bill makes this important option highly unlikely and begins to erode our bipartisan “Raise the Age” law we agreed to four years ago. While a number of Senators worked to make this legislation better than the original bill, I remain concerned that this new law would keep some children from getting treatment they need while making communities less safe. Instead, the legislature should invest significantly more in our juvenile justice system to ensure resources are available to help prevent crimes and appropriately deal with children who break the law."
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