SC's Raise the Age law is about to go into effect. How it will be implemented remains vague.
Three years ago, South Carolina lawmakers passed a bill that raised the maximum age from 17 to 18 that teenagers could be considered adults in the criminal justice system.
The measure goes into effect July and will affect the likely thousands of teenagers across the state who will be accused of a crime in coming years.
Between 2010 and 2015, an average of 17,000 kids, ages 12-17, were arrested by South Carolina law enforcement, according to data collected by the Campaign for Youth Justice, a Washington, D.C.-based juvenile offender advocacy group.
Exceptions to the new law include teens younger than 18 accused of the most serious crimes including murder, rape and any felony for which someone could be sentenced for 15 years or more behind bars.
Read more: https://www.postandcourier.com/news/sc-s-raise-the-age-law-is-about-to-go/article_69335050-8bb0-11e9-b95a-ffa4649741db.html
