by Washington Sen. Claudia Kauffman and Rep. Chris Stearns

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Right now, 422 Indigenous people incarcerated in Washington’s state prisons are serving longer sentences because they were involved in the juvenile system as children.

No one should be penalized twice for crimes committed when they were young. Our focus must be on healing and rehabilitation, not punishment.

The Washington State Legislature recognized this in 2023 with the passage of House Bill 1324, ending the automatic use of juvenile points in sentencing, which disproportionately impacts our Communities of Color. However, the bill did not apply retroactively, leaving behind more than 1,000 incarcerated individuals and failing to correct past harms.

House Bill 2065 would remedy that by giving those people the opportunity to have their sentences recalculated without double-penalizing people for juvenile mistakes. We urge our colleagues to support this necessary reform bill, so we can begin to rectify the vast racial disparities in our prison system.

Our Tribal communities are the most disproportionately impacted by this failed state carceral policy — 41% of Indigenous people currently incarcerated have one or more juvenile felony adjudications in their criminal history. That number is 39% for Black people, 38% for Pacific Islanders, and 32% for Latino people. The evidence is clear: Juvenile points are a quiet driver of racial disproportionality and inequity, particularly for our Tribes.

Indigenous peoples suffer from generations of historical trauma, spanning the forced migration to Indian reservations, the abduction and assimilation of Indian children in federal boarding schools, and the destruction of Indigenous kinship systems. Our youth carry their parents’ and grandparents’ trauma, which contributes to the mistakes they make and the hurt they cause others as juveniles.

Current scientific research has shown that young people’s brains are rarely fully developed before age 25. Due also to mental health afflictions associated with intergenerational trauma, many Indigenous and other marginalized children are unable to fully grasp the consequences of their incorrect choices.

HB 2065 modernizes our state’s sentencing system in a way that is developmentally appropriate and efficient and addresses historic racial disproportionality caused by the use of juvenile points. It’s fundamentally unjust that two people can serve vastly different sentences for committing the same offense, simply because of an arbitrary difference in the time when the sentence was handed down. Retroactive reform ensures that the adjustments we make to our criminal justice system benefit those who have been most severely impacted by its inequities.

At the same time, victims and survivors need to be seen and heard. We must protect against retraumatizing them in the resentencing process. That is why we appreciate Rep. Lauren Davis’ contribution to the bill through amendments allowing for victim advocacy services and wraparound support.

In supporting HB 2065, we all have the opportunity to break the cycle of multigenerational trauma, heal wounds, foster empathy and public safety, and pave the way for a future where every member of our society can thrive.

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The opinions, beliefs, and viewpoints expressed by the contributors on this website do not necessarily reflect the opinions, beliefs, and viewpoints of the Emerald or official policies of the Emerald.

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Washington Sen. Claudia Kauffman is a Nez Perce citizen, and Rep. Christopher Stearns is a Navajo Nation citizen. They each represent the 47th Legislative District in South King County.

📸 Featured Image: Photo via Dan Henson/Shutterstock.com

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