JUVENILES: Coalition objects to secrecy

Officers: Michelle Nedved, President; Sean Flaherty, 1st Vice President; Steve Powell, Past President; Trustees: Roger Harnack, Teresa Myers, Rudi Alcott, Matt Winters, Ron Judd and Bob Richardson.

THE WASHINGTON NEWSPAPER is the offical publication of the Washington Newspaper Publishers Association. It is published monthly by WNPA, PO Box 389, Port Townsend, WA 98368.

Fred Obee: Executive Director: 360-344-2938 Email: fredobee@wnpa.com

Janay Collins, Member Services Director: 360-344-2938. Email: ads@wnpa.com

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Prosecuting Attorneys, the Superior Court Judges’ Association, Allied Daily Newspapers, the Washington Association of Juvenile Court Administrators, the Washington State Association of Broadcasters, the Washington Coalition for Open Government and WNPA.

“The practical effect of confidential records is to seriously restrict who knows about the proceedings. Sunlight on a proceeding is valuable not just to the public, but to the youth. The principle of courts operating openly is bedrock. If a pro- ceeding is open but only the hearing participants know it, the goals underlying open court guarantees are jeopardized. The community has a vested interest in knowing when serious crimes such as murder, rape, robbery, carjacking, and so on are committed by juveniles and that offenders are held accountable for these behaviors. It also can offer valuable resources such as supportive networks and restorative experiences.”

Proponents of the bill say something must be done to help juveniles move beyond their criminal records as adults. Many face discrimina- tion in employment and housing when their juvenile records become known, supporters said.

The fate of the bill at this writing is uncertain. It was scheduled for an executive session Feb. 14 but that did not happen.

This year, the cutoff for bills to pass out of committee and be read into the record on the floor is Feb. 17.

Other states are also seeing similar bills proposed in their legislatures. Although not identical to Washington’s bill, all seek restrictions on open juvenile records.