It would be an unusual case where a teenager as young as 14 should be charged in adult court, but unusual is not the same as never. In 2016, the people of California decided by direct vote that the decision as to whether to charge teens in the 14 to less-than-18 age range in adult court should be made by a judge and not the prosecutor. Okay, that's democracy.
Can the Legislature then strike the balance in a different place and decide that teens a day or more short of their 16th birthday can never be charged in adult court no matter how depraved their crimes? The California Court of Appeal for the Second District said no in O.G. v. Superior Court, No. B295555.
The Legislature cannot overrule the electorate. All power of government ultimately resides in the people. [Citations.] Under the guise of "amendment," an initiative may not be "annulled" by the Legislature. Consistent with precedent, we "jealously guard" the law as declared by the voters. We hold that Senate Bill No. 1391 is unconstitutional insofar as it precludes the possibility of adult prosecution of an alleged 15-year-old murderer.* * *Fifteen-year-old O.G., despite his age, is deeply enmeshed in youth gang culture. On two separate occasions and in the company of gang cohorts, he is alleged to have been the actual murderer of two people who were in the wrong place at the wrong time. On one occasion, the victim was shot to death. On the other occasion, the victim was stabbed to death. The People of the State of California, by and through the Ventura County District Attorney, seek to try petitioner as an adult. Proposition 57, an initiative passed by the voters allows the district attorney, with the approval of the superior court, to try him as an adult. But effective January 1, 2019, Senate Bill No. 1391 (Stats. 2018, ch. 1012, ยง 1 (hereafter S.B. 1391)) prohibits even asking the superior court for such permission. Instead, notwithstanding a body count, the facts and circumstances concerning the commission of the offenses, or the background and history of the perpetrator, a 15-year-old alleged murderer must be dealt with in the juvenile court.
Other courts of appeal have ruled differently, and yesterday the California Supreme Court took the case up to resolve the conflict. The case number in the Supreme Court is S259011.
The People in this case are represented by the District Attorney of Ventura County, Greg Totten, not Attorney General Xavier Becerra. That is a good thing in this case.
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