Los Angeles County Juvenile Defense | Law Offices of Jerod Gunsberg

California Governor Jerry Brown signed a law that would give juveniles who received life sentences a chance to petition a judge to reduce their sentences.

There are approximately 300 inmates in California who received life sentences for crimes they committed as juveniles.  Most of these involve murder convictions for acts that took place when the juvenile was 16 or 17 years old.

Under the new law, which was referred to as SB9 as it wound its way through the legislative process, these inmates may petition a judge to reconsider sentence if they meet certain conditions.  Most importantly, the inmate must serve at least 15 years in prison before they have the right to petition the court for a reduced sentence.  If a judge finds sufficient evidence of remorse and rehabilitation, the judge has the authority to reduce the sentence to 25 years to life.  That would provide an opportunity for the inmate to be released from prison at some point in the future.

As a parent, I am sympathetic to the families of the victims of the crimes that resulted in the life sentence.  Some of these families opposed this bill on the grounds that they were promised that the kids who murdered their loved ones would never be released from prison.  I can see why such families might see this new law as unfair.

As a criminal defense lawyer who represents juveniles in Los Angeles, I know that the brain of a juvenile is different than that of an adult.  Juveniles have less impulse control.  That does not of course justify committing crimes, let alone murder.  It does, however, suggest that putting away juveniles for life is a bad idea unless you include some mechanism that allows for judicial review of the sentence.  Given what we now know about juvenile brain development, we should not be promising victims’ families that the 16 or 17 year old who was convicted will never leave prison.

SB9 is a good and modest step towards making sure that we align our juvenile justice system with what we are increasingly learning about juveniles and how they are different from adults.  Governor Brown was right to sign SB9 into law.

Adderall is a prescription drug that the FDA approved to treat Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD).  According to a recent New York Times article, Attention Disorder or Not, Pills to Help in School, certain doctors are taking it upon themselves to prescribe Adderall to underprivileged children who don’t exhibit the symptoms of ADHD.   The doctors justify this practice on the grounds that Adderall helps children focus and earn better grades.

Some people who support this practice also point out that it is cheaper and in the short run more effective than fixing crumbling schools, making them safer, funding them properly, or doing the other things that would improve the academic performance of our children.

Several educators contacted for this article considered the subject of A.D.H.D. so controversial — the diagnosis was misused at times, they said, but for many children it is a serious learning disability — that they declined to comment. The superintendent of one major school district in California, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, noted that diagnosis rates of A.D.H.D. have risen as sharply as school funding has declined.

“It’s scary to think that this is what we’ve come to; how not funding public education to meet the needs of all kids has led to this,” said the superintendent, referring to the use of stimulants in children without classic A.D.H.D. “I don’t know, but it could be happening right here. Maybe not as knowingly, but it could be a consequence of a doctor who sees a kid failing in overcrowded classes with 42 other kids and the frustrated parents asking what they can do. The doctor says, ‘Maybe it’s A.D.H.D., let’s give this a try.’ ”

As a parent, I can see how doctors decide to ignore broader societal issues to do what they think is right for an individual student.  But as a Los Angeles criminal defense lawyer who defends juveniles accused of committing crimes, I know that the New York Times story misses an important aspect of prescribing Adderall to more students.  Under federal law, Adderall is a Class II controlled substance; same as cocaine.  It is a crime to use Adderall for non-therapeutic reasons.  When doctors give more students Adderall, they also increase the chances that their patients will share the drugs with friends and classmates who have not received a prescription.  This may not sound like a big deal, but it is.

Many states, including California, are increasingly cracking down on students who possess or distribute prescription drugs such as Adderall.  That is one reason why as matter of social matter, it’s not sensible both to encourage doctors to hand out Adderall and then criminalize the unauthorized use of Adderall by juveniles.   If, as a society we make the decision not to invest adequately in our schools, let’s not make the situation worse by criminalizing the possession of small amounts of Adderall by kids.

Unfortunately, more and more juveniles are being ensnared by the criminal justice system in connection with prescription drugs.  That’s why it’s critical to work with lawyers who are experienced in defending juveniles in criminal matters.