What’ll it take to get Albany to heed DA David Soares’ pleas to save lives?
Albany District Attorney David Soares is again providing fresh evidence that the state’s Raise the Age law is an unmitigated horror show, this time blaming it for a murder by an unreformed teen.
The prosecutor, a progressive, cites the case of 17-year-old Aalias Gilbert, who recently pleaded guilty to murder after having several previous run-ins with the law, beginning with his first arrest at 14 for robbery in 2020.
That case and his other subsequent ones were all handled in Family Court, where “defendants” suffer no meaningful consequences for their crimes, instead of regular criminal court.
It’s a direct result of the Raise the Age law, which sends most criminal defendants under the age of 18 to Family Court.
Gilbert’s stepfather also notes that the teen was offered no resources or counseling to help him deal with his anger issues.
The youth now faces 20 years to life in prison.
“The person who pulled the trigger has acknowledged responsibility; those responsible for creating the conditions which led to the murder have taken zero responsibility for their part,” fumed the DA.
He’s absolutely right.
Soares aimed his comment directly aimed at state lawmakers, like Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie, who refuse to toughen RTA despite the carnage unleashed by the law.
Since Day 1 the DA has correctly argued that Family Court wasn’t designed to “deal with violent, super, super, violent youth,” and the absence of consequences or rehabilitation inevitably leads to an increase in juvenile repeat offenders.
In New York City, the number of violent crime arrests of teens has skyrocketed this year, and juvenile recidivism has spiked.
DA Soares says Gov. Kathy Hochul and lawmakers have “normalized” violence without consequences in urban minority communities, such as Albany and New York City.
Which can lead to only one thing: more violence.
Heastie & Co. just don’t care.
Their pathetically flawed “progressive” ideology is more important.
