RALEIGH — Legislation that provides additional resources to help clear some of the backlog in Robeson County courts was signed i to law Monday by Gov. Roy Cooper.
The bill allocates money for more prosecutors, judges and judicial staff across the state as more young offenders get funneled to the juvenile system instead of adult court. In Robeson County, the new law provides money to increase the number of assistant district attorneys from 12 to 13 and for the number of District Court judges from five to six.
The new law allocates money to fund the provisions of the Raise the Age legislation, which goes into effect Dec. 1. The legislation raises the age of juvenile court jurisdiction from 16 to 18, thus ending North Carolina’s distinction of being the last state in the nation to treat 16- and 17-year-olds as adults in court.
Sen. Danny Britt Jr., a Republican from Lumberton, was one of the drivers behind Raise the Age and finding funding for the legislation.
“Thankfully, we were able to pass Raise the Age funding despite the initial attempt and veto by the governor to halt such funding,” he said. “This initiative will hopefully give teenagers a chance to make something of their lives after nonviolent offenses. A young man or woman’s future shouldn’t be destroyed because of a mistake they made at 16.
“As a primary sponsor on the Raise the Age legislation, which made its way to the budget, I understand we must fund this important change. These resources are critical to ensuring our newly elected district attorney, Matthew Scott, and his staff can expand the different courts as they plan to help alleviate the backlog of cases.”
Cooper signed the Raise the Age funding measure in to law even while criticizing some position allocations as politically motivated.
“Funding for Raise the Age will enable the state criminal justice system to handle juvenile offenders appropriately and is sorely needed,” Cooper said. “It is disappointing that other changes in this bill play politics by realigning judges and district attorneys instead of following a nonpartisan formula.”
Also on Monday, Cooper signed into law a bill that increases access to grant money for rural broadband projects.
The bills signed by Cooper on Monday are two of several standalone pieces of legislation containing popular topics from the two-year budget vetoed by the governor on June 28, one day after it was given final approval by the General Assembly. Cooper opposes the piecemeal approach but so far has signed all but one of the “mini-budget” items pushed by Republican lawmakers.
