La Crosse supporting bill to try 17-year-olds as juveniles

County’s criminal justice council voted to support recent bill

It’s one of those laws that may have seemed like a good idea at the time.

Several years ago, Wisconsin followed a national trend of putting 17-year-old crime suspects in adult court, instead of the juvenile system. But some states have reversed that policy, because of research showing that 17 is too young for most teenagers to experience adult jails.

La Crosse County’s criminal justice council has voted to support a bill to treat 17-year-olds in Wisconsin as juveniles.

Associate county administrator Jane Klekamp hopes the state will help counties pay for the transition, if the bill becomes law. Some 17-year-olds could still be moved to adult court, if the crime is serious enough.