Councilmember Wells Withdraws Name from Juvenile Justice Improvement Amendment Act of 2008

On Wednesday, November 19th, Councilmember Tommy Wells withdrew his name as a co-introducer from the “Juvenile Justice Improvement Amendment Act of 2008.” 

Councilmember Wells stated, “My first priority is the safety of my Ward 6 residents. Over the course of the last several months, I heard from many neighbors who believed that some of the provisions in this bill would not protect their communities in the way it was intended. Following these discussions, I have decided to take my name off this particular piece of legislation, with the intent to work with my constituents and colleagues to introduce a revised bill next year.”

The legislation was crafted to address several components of juvenile justice, including adding greater oversight of trying juveniles as adults in the criminal justice system.

Wells added, “There are parts of the legislation that I support very strongly – such as ending the practice of placing youth awaiting trial in the DC Jail with adult criminals. However, I expect my recently formed Ward 6 Juvenile Crime Task Force to review and outline several additional recommendations that I would like to incorporate within a new package of juvenile crime reforms to keep our neighborhoods safe."

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