“Washington Democrats are ready to vote on a bill that would release juvenile killers from jail early — so long as they didn’t kill more than two victims, the apparent threshold for Democratic sympathy — and then give them free rent to live in your neighborhood,” reports Jason Rantz of AM 770:
Senate Bill 5266-S2 modifies the state’s approach to juvenile sentencing and early release eligibility. Individuals convicted of crimes committed before their 18th birthday can petition the Indeterminate Sentence Review Board (ISRB) for early release upon reaching the age of 24, provided they meet specific criteria. Those convicted of three or more murder offenses must serve at least 20 years before petitioning.
The primary sponsor for the bill is State Sen. Noel Frame (D-Seattle), who said this “is about accountability.” How? Frame doesn’t explain, of course. She did, however, say that it’s not fair for a juvenile murderer to have to wait the current 20 years before being considered for release.
If they’re granted release, the murderer or other serious felon would be provided rental vouchers courtesy of taxpayers. But the bill does not specify for how long rental vouchers could be offered, meaning they could be provided indefinitely.
The bill is based on the now-cliché argument about “brain development” not happening until a juvenile turns 24. Democrats pretend a juvenile doesn’t recognize it’s wrong to murder people until 24, though in Washington they say a 13-year-old can start to transition to a different gender without parental consent.
A number of juvenile criminals testified in favor of the bill that would help release them from confinement early. Among those who testified in favor of the bill were two murderers and a child molester. The exact kind of criminals many Washington Democrats want to release, no matter the impact this has on the family members of the victims.
Passing this bill would increase the crime rate. Keeping criminals in prison keeps them from committing crimes, especially young criminals. Most inmates commit more crimes after being released, but older inmates commit fewer crimes after being released, and they tend to commit less serious crimes than inmates released at a younger age. According to the Bureau of Justice Statistics, 81.9% of all state prisoners released in 2008 were subsequently arrested by 2018, compared to 74.5% of those 40 or older at the time of their release, 56.1% of those age 55 at the time of their release, and 40.1% of those over age 65 at the time of their release. (See Bureau of Justice Statistics, Recidivism of Prisoners in 24 States Released in 2008: A 10-Year Follow-Up Period (2008-2018) (Sept. 2021), pg. 4, Table 4).
Reducing punishment for young criminals increases the crime rate. As criminology professor Peter Moskos notes, “Recidivism among 16-year-olds went up” a lot when the age for being prosecuted in adult court was raised in New York. About four in ten killers commit their crime before age 25. Once released, young killers often commit more violent crimes, including more murders.
Moreover, longer prison sentences also deter crimes by people outside of prison, such as murder, robbery, and rape, as a 1998 study found.
Similarly, a 2008 Santa Clara University study found that longer sentences for three-time offenders led to “significantly faster rates of decline in robbery, burglary, larceny, and motor vehicle theft,” even after controlling for pre-existing crime trends and economic, demographic, and policy factors.
Studies of countries with short prison sentences have found that letting criminals out early increases the crime rate, making longer prison sentences a good investment. When El Salvador increased its incarceration rate, its murder rate fell by more than 90%. Jailing more criminals saved thousands of lives in El Salvador.
