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Juvenile Laws Need a Comprehensive Update

Posted on: Wednesday, 13 July 2005, 12:00 CDT

There is often a tendency to put off repairs until a major breakdown occurs. A stabbing case involving two girls in Scarborough qualifies as a legal breakdown, and points to the need for repairs in the way the Maine Juvenile Code addresses mental health and incapacity related to minors.

The Scarborough case began as an informal initiation ceremony between a 15-year-old and a 20-year-old this past March. It turned violent, however, resulting in attempted murder charges against the teenager, who cut her friend on the throat and neck and inflicted an abdominal wound on herself.

A gap in the Maine Juvenile Code became apparent this week in a court proceeding. The 15-year-old was judged by state psychiatry experts to be delusional at the time of the crime. By virtue of that finding she may likely not be confined to a juvenile correction center or be forced to undergo any long-term, court-supervised therapy.

The Maine Juvenile Code does authorize courts to hospitalize youths who are so mentally ill that they can't be held responsible for their actions. However, it does not give courts the authority to order long-term therapy for those who are mentally ill but don't require hospitalization.

In the Scarborough case, Judge Peter Goranites, with the agreement of both sides, elected to suspend the proceedings until December. That move was effectively a compromise stopgap. It kept the 15-year-old under state supervision and allowed for further therapy until December. Had the case been closed, the state's authority would have ended and the girl allowed to go free - with no requirements for state supervision.

The Maine Juvenile Code should be re-examined, especially as it relates to mental health and incapacity. The code is usually tweaked by the Legislature every year, but has seen few major changes relating to mental health for a number of years.

A quick fix of this particular gap would be of value, but is not a solution - a comprehensive examination aided by the input of mental health experts is needed. The mental health field has changed dramatically, making significant progress in diagnosis and treatment. Juvenile crime has also grown and changed, so it is time Maine's laws relating to crimes, incapacity and treatment were upgraded.

Money, of course, is an issue. Mental health intervention for youths, however, should be viewed as a long-term investment, leading to fiscal, emotional and social savings down the road.

Source: Portland Press Herald

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