NORFOLK, Va — A bipartisan bill protecting juvenile abuse and human trafficking victims in court is now sitting on Governor Youngkin's desk, awaiting his signature.
House Bill 268 has already passed unanimously through the Virginia house and senate. The bill gives abused or trafficked children the chance to have their background of abuse brought before the court if they are charged with an offense.
“Instead of understanding these issues we too often problematize the behavior and make an arrest," said Yasmin Vafa, the head of the non-profit, Rights4Girls.
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Her organization advocates for policy reforms that center around the needs of marginalized girls.
“We have to recognize the importance of developing developmentally appropriate laws and trauma informed laws so that we are not causing more harm," she said.
HB268 could count as that trauma involved legislation. It just needs some fresh ink.
Within the Virginia structure, a juvenile who has committed a violent crime is reviewed for being tried as an adult. However, usually the review just goes over basic information like how they are doing in school. This bill allows for that abuse background to be brought up in juvenile court.
“There needs to be accountability, of course, for any child who commits egregious acts of violence, but it needs to be done within the context of recognizing that these are children, and these are children who have experienced incredible and unspeakable acts of violence,” Vafa said.
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The legislation was introduced by Delegate Vivian Watts. News 3 had a phone call with her on Wednesday afternoon. She says this bill should see less children tried as adults.
“It keeps them within the juvenile court system where the emphasis is on treatment and rehabilitation and looking at the circumstance of the kid," Watts said.
Youngkin has 30 days to sign it or determine if he wants to make any amendments to it.
To learn more about the sexual abuse to prison pipeline, you can check out the work of Rights4Girls here.
