Baltimore City State's Attorney Ivan Bates discusses efforts to curb juvenile crime

BALTIMORE -- Baltimore City State's Attorney Ivan Bates stopped by WJZ on Wednesday for a conversation on the alarming spike in juvenile crime and the efforts to hold young offenders accountable.

Bates highlighted several new Maryland laws, which took effect on Nov. 1, that focus on combatting juvenile crime.

Juvenile crime arrests have increased by 146% compared to last year, according to the Baltimore City State's Attorney's Office. In 2023, there were 66 arrests for serious crimes involving minors in Baltimore City. This year, there have been 163.

"We have to let young people know that there are consequences for their actions and they have to be held accountable," Bates said.

Why the rise in juvenile crime?

State's Attorney Ivan Bates said truancy is a key component of why teenagers and children find themselves in trouble.

"So many of our young people, they are truant, they are just not going to school," Bates said. "Going to school is super important, in terms of that baseline."

Bates said he hopes the new laws that went into effect a few weeks ago will tighten the Maryland Department of Juvenile Services (DJS) policies.

"We have to look at the previous policies of DJS. Under the law, there were certain things they just were not doing," Bates said. "But the law changed Nov. 1, so I remain cautiously optimistic that there will be a change."

New juvenile reform laws

A new Maryland law makes it possible for children between the ages of 10 to 12 to be charged with illegal gun possession, auto theft, animal cruelty, and sexual offense in the third degree. Before the change, children had to be 13 to be charged with these offenses.

The law allows the state's attorney's office to review cases against young people who are under the Department of Juvenile Services (DJS) supervision. Previously, the decision was up to the DJS.

Bates said documents concerning detained young people will now reach the State's Attorney's Office within two days.

"Before, the paperwork would come to our office maybe 25 days, 50 days, 75 days later," Bates said.

If DJS places a young person on electronic home detention and they violate the order, Bates said DJS must alert the courts, the state's attorney, and the defense attorney within 24 hours.

Additional changes

Changes to juvenile justice laws also extend the time limits on juvenile probation, increasing a misdemeanor offense from six months to a one-year probation period.

The maximum initial probation period for a felony offense increases from one year to two years.

"Also, it gives the judges the ability to bring young people back before them when they violate their probation," Bates said.

Bates hopes this ends the repeat juvenile offender cycle and gives young people the necessary resources.

"Where we've circled that young person the very first time because there's a level of accountability," Bates said. "So, when the police make the arrest, that young person will come in and everybody will understand what's going on with this young person."

The following Maryland detention policies have been reformed for juvenile offenders along with the launch of supportive programming to keep at-risk juveniles out of the system altogether:

• All youth who are referred to the department after being accused of a violent felony and who are not detained will be placed on electronic monitoring before their initial court appearance.
• All youth who are already on electronic monitoring and are charged with a violent felony will be detained.
• "CARE"—or Community Assistance for the Release Eligible—is a new program that will work with system-involved youth who are neither detained nor placed on community detention to support them and their families and provide service referrals.
• The Detention Diversion Advocacy Program will support youth who are placed by the courts in the community while their cases are pending with intensive supervision support from credible messengers.

New DJS commission

Maryland's DJS has a new 26-member Commission on Juvenile Justice Reform and Emerging Best Practices is tasked with reviewing programs to divert children from the juvenile justice system. 

The commission will also review and report on a number of high-priority juvenile justice policies, including the treatment and programming of females in the juvenile justice system and more.

"We have more of a checks and balances of what's going on with DJS," Bates said. "We are having more communication and dialogue on how to hold young people accountable."