Illinois bill raising minimum detainment age for minors to 12 heads to House floor

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (WAND) — A proposal heading to the Illinois House floor could raise the minimum detainment age for minors from 10 to 12 years old.

Sponsors believe raising the detainment age can give young people a fair chance and prevent early criminalization.

The measure calls on the Illinois Juvenile Justice Commission to make recommendations for availability of youth services to reduce the use of detention and prevent deeper criminal involvement. It also requires research on the impact and advisability of raising the minimum detention age to 14.

"There is a carveout for things like aggravated vehicular hijacking and murder for 12-year-olds," said Sen. Robert Peters (D-Chicago). "I'm sure there's a few other changes. But for violent crimes, there's a carveout for 12-year-olds."

Advocates argue this legislation could invest in the future of youth instead of locking them up at the start of their lives.

Senate Bill 1784 passed out of the House Judiciary-Criminal Committee on a 9-6 vote Tuesday night. The measure previously passed out of the Senate on a 33-17 vote.

"At the end of the day, what we know is we're going to improve the system and I'm willing to work with folks on the other side of the aisle to make sure that everybody has good comfortable services that give dignity to our young people," Peters said.