History of juvenile justice debate in Maryland as concerns persist

BALTIMORE (WBFF) — For years, Maryland lawmakers have sought fixes to the state’s juvenile justice system; they’ve passed sweeping reforms, rolled back parts of those reforms, replaced agency leadership and approved another major overhaul of how young offenders are charged. But not everyone is happy.

From the controversial Juvenile Justice Reform Act of 2022 to this year’s Youth Charging Reform Act, the debate over how Maryland should handle juvenile offenders has become one of the General Assembly’s most persistent policy battles.

The 2022 law shortened probation terms for juveniles, expanded diversion opportunities and barred most criminal charges against children younger than 13.

Former State Sen. Jill Carter, one of the legislation’s leading supporters, argued Maryland had relied too heavily on prosecution instead of intervention.

“The issue is that Maryland was over prosecuting children,” Carter previously told FOX45 News.

Almost immediately, police agencies and prosecutors pushed back.

Anne Arundel County Police publicly released dozens of cases they said involved children who could not be criminally charged under the new law, including a 12-year-old accused of bringing a loaded handgun to MacArthur Middle School. The case quickly became one of the most cited examples by critics of the reforms. Amid the criticism, Carter defended the law.

“The 12-year-old that brought the gun to school is not going to be put in cuffs or a cage or a cell,” Carter told FOX45 News in 2023.

Democratic lawmakers voted to override then-Gov. Larry Hogan’s veto of legislation limiting public access to juvenile case information, even when a juvenile was charged as an adult.

By 2024, even supporters acknowledged tweaks were necessary. Gov. Wes Moore signed House Bill 814, rolling back portions of the 2022 reforms, including expanding the Department of Juvenile Services’ supervision to juveniles between the ages of 10 and 12 years old; lengthened probation terms; required a Child in Need of Supervision, CINS, petition or first-time auto theft cases.

At the time, Baltimore City State’s Attorney Ivan Bates said the legislation was a step in the right direction, but the issue wasn’t complete.

“Does it go far enough? There’s more work to do,” Bates said.

Gov. Moore replaced DJS Secretary Vincent Schiraldi. He said he was “excited about the new direction” for the agency.

Harford County Sheriff Jeff Gahler, Bates, and others praised the move.

“The governor made the right call. It took long to make it,” Gahler said.

“We’re cautiously optimistic,” Bates said.

In 2025, lawmakers renewed the push for the Youth Charging Reform Act; an effort to curb how many offenses automatically land juveniles in adult court. But the effort sparked criticism from top prosecutors.

Anne Arundel County State’s Attorney Anne Colt Leitess warned the legislation fundamentally changes how prosecutors evaluate serious juvenile crimes.

“You’re literally shifting the way that we analyze the cases and decide,” she previously told FOX45 News.

The bill’s sponsor, Sen. Will Smith, argued the change simply reflects what already happens in practice because DJS ultimately handles most juvenile cases.

“They are already doing the workload. We’re just wasting time and money,” Smith said.

Montgomery County State’s Attorney John McCarthy questioned whether lawmakers were solving the underlying problems.

“Are we solving problems or just revolving these children again through the system, almost ensuring they’ll be back in the system again?” McCarthy asked.

Bates echoed that concern.

“We have to fix the system before we can agree on something, and until we fix the system we can’t agree,” he said.

Despite the opposition, Gov. Moore signed the legislation into law. But the persistent complaints didn’t stop.

Most recently, Bates called the juvenile justice system broke “from top to bottom.”

“They need to really listen to the people who are in the system, who are on the ground floor,” Bates said.

Political analyst John Dedie says the ongoing debate isn’t unusual. He said the debate surrounding juvenile crime has been happening in Maryland for years. Policies often change only after lawmakers perceive existing policies have failed. When asked whether waiting for policy failures is the right way to govern, Dedie acknowledged it may not be ideal.

“Unfortunately, it’s the only way sometimes policy is change.”

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