By Brian Evans, State Campaigns Director
From 2010-2015, an average of 600 children were tried as adults in Alabama each year; most of them were sent to adult court automatically, without any judicial review. It is well known that the adult system is worse, both for the young people sent there, and because of higher recidivism rates, for the society that sent them there. In an election year where reactionary, ‘80s-style, “tough on crime” rhetoric is making an unwelcome comeback, it is refreshing to see that Alabama apparently intends to move – albeit slowly – in the “smart on crime” direction.
