Set standards for jailed teens

Virginia has no standard for deciding where to house teens accused of crimes and waiting to be tried in adult court. Some are sent to juvenile detention; others are jailed with much older inmates.

If they're placed in juvenile detention, they're expected to go to school, get counseling, set goals. If they're sent to jail, the opportunities for any sort of help are limited. Teens are more likely to be assaulted in adult facilities. They're more likely to commit other crimes once released.

Sen. Louise Lucas, a Portsmouth Democrat, is sponsoring a bill that would establish a standard for youths charged as adults. The bill, which unanimously passed the Senate, would specify that teens be housed in a juvenile facility unless officials believe the teen is too dangerous to be with other youths. Then a hearing would be required, and a judge would decide placement.

The bill is a common-sense approach that separates the most dangerous kids from those accused of minor crimes. It also helps protect more teens from predators and gives them a better shot at education and rehabilitation while they're awaiting trial.

As the Virginia State Crime Commission spends another year considering whether to rewrite the laws governing prosecution of teens in adult court, the Senate has agreed to add one bit of oversight to the process that determines the fate of 700 teens a year in Virginia.

Judges should be given the authority to decide whether youths need the restrictions of jail or whether they, and society, will be better served by the juvenile system.

The House of Delegates should send this bill to the governor, who should sign it.