More than a few young people caught up in crime, when you get right down to it, suffer from a mental illness or are drug abusers.
They may become hardened criminals some day, but they are more lost than anything else, and what they need more than handcuffs is help.
Without that help, they may indeed become hardened criminals.
A bill pending in the state Senate, reflecting that view, would encourage the earliest possible mental health and drug treatment for juvenile offenders -- within days, not weeks or months.
The measure, House Bill 6129, has been passed in the House. We urge its speedy approval in the Senate.
When juveniles -- age 17 and under -- are arrested and detained, they are by law supposed to be screened within 48 hours to assess their emotional and mental state and for possible treatment. Defense attorneys, however, frequently advise their young clients to say nothing during these initial screenings -- or even later ones -- for fear they may incriminate themselves.
What the young person says can be used against him or her in court.
The bill, sponsored by state Rep. Will Burns (D-Chicago), would protect the arrested juvenile against incriminating himself through any statements he might make about the crime that led to his arrest. Those statements generally would be inadmissable in court.
The Cook County state's attorney's office opposed an early draft of the law that would have made all statements by the juvenile -- even about past crimes -- off limits.
The state's attorney dropped its opposition when the bill was rewritten to pertain only to comments made about the crime for which the juvenile was arrested.
That leaves us wondering how much good the bill will do. Many defense attorneys -- wary of any mention of past crimes -- still will advise their clients to clam up.
But the proposed law represents a step in the direction of diverting young offenders from jail to community-based treatment programs, which studies show can be more successful in reducing recidivism.
That first screening can mean all the difference to a young person's future, says Northwestern University law Professor Gene Griffin.
Once a screening has been done, he said, "They can work up a whole community-based treatment plan and go to the judge and say, 'Your honor, this person is mentally ill and we have these programs.' "
Treatment can even begin while the juvenile is awaiting trial, opening the door early for a possible recovery.
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