State lawmakers will meet this week to consider rolling back life-without-parole sentences for juveniles, but members of the low-profile but influential Colorado District Attorney’s Council have already reached a nearly unanimous position on the idea: They’re against it.
“The position of the DAs is that the sentence of life is appropriate” for youths, said Dave Thomas, executive director of the taxpayer-supported DA lobbying group. “This is a very firm position.”
One council member, Pueblo County District Attorney Bill Thiebaut, is challenging that stance as too rigid, saying prosecutors should recognize that their jobs are more than just jailing people.
“We have a duty to save people when we can,” said Thiebaut, who supports giving juveniles a shot at parole at less than 40 years, as well as a commission to study reforms. “Standing for principle is what the people want. The concept of forgiveness and reconciliation must be a part of the debate here.”
During the past two weeks, members of the DA council have privately discussed opposing the House bill sponsored by Rep. Lynn Hefley. It would give juveniles, including those now serving a life term, a parole hearing after 40 years.
The strong opposition surprised Hefley, who tried to work with the council to reach agreement on a bill its members could support.
“I was terribly disappointed,” said Hefley, R-Colorado Springs. “But it looks to me like the public has a great interest in finding out whether reform is necessary. I’m standing firm. Let the chips fall where they may.”
“A very difficult issue”
The prosecutors’ opposition sets up an emotion-packed showdown at Thursday’s hearing of the House Judiciary Committee, where Hefley’s bill will be discussed. Representatives from a coalition of 16 criminal-justice and advocacy groups will be there to support changes to the state’s system.
Colorado is among a minority of states where prosecutors can charge teens as young as 14 in adult courts, putting them on a path to prison for life. That controversial power was created partly as a result of aggressive behind-the-scenes maneuvering by district attorneys at the Capitol in recent decades.
The DA council acts primarily as the advocacy arm for the state’s 22 district attorney offices, lobbying for legislation, tracking criminal data and providing training programs. Its $1 million budget comes from tax dollars contributed from member DA offices’ budgets, but their meetings are generally membership-only gatherings without public input.
Thomas said the council membership takes stands on legislative proposals when a clear consensus exists. Hefley’s bill meets that standard, he said, mainly because it rolls back life sentences for those currently serving time – a measure deemed by Hefley as “the heart” of her bill.
“This is a very difficult issue for the DAs,” Thomas said. “They have personally handled some of these cases and have told the victims’ families (life sentences) are what they can expect.”
Though Thomas, former DA for Jefferson County, acknowledges that prisoners released after they committed homicides have among the lowest recidivism rates, he said he shares the pain of other prosecutors who have tried “difficult” murder cases and believe the stiffest possible sentences are necessary. “The pain never goes away.”
Like Thomas, Denver DA Mitch Morrissey is among those who oppose Hefley’s bill because it is retroactive and could affect victims’ rights.
A push for reform
A coalition of organizations, including the state Criminal Defense Bar Association, believes that juvenile killers must be given the option of rehabilitation, in part because of their physiological differences and the possibility that the adult system can mishandle cases, sending youths away forever.
“I don’t want to diminish these people who are the victims in some of these cases,” said Maureen Cain of the defense association. “But the system is always bigger than one case. This involves children, and in their effort to never look soft on crime, the DAs have abandoned their constituents. People are much more advanced in their thinking and realize the kids should be treated differently.”
Thiebaut, the Pueblo County DA, said he believes the council is looking at the problem in a narrow way and should back an “open process instead of a restricted one” out of the public eye, perhaps by supporting the creation of a public commission to review juvenile cases and the fairness of sentencing laws.
“The DA council doesn’t like any review at all. I respect their view and I’m not trying to diminish it. But what I’d like to see the legislature do is set up a group collaboration, a commission, and invite people in to study problems besides the normal stakeholders such as prosecutors and defense attorneys.”
Last year, Gov. Bill Owens vetoed a bill that would have created a study commission, but he has declined to stake out a position on Hefley’s new bill.
Though he likes the concept, Thiebaut doesn’t support Hefley’s bill, he said, because 40 years is an arbitrary period too “far out” for possibility of parole.
To state Rep. Terrance Carroll, chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, too many kids have been “branded monsters” for crimes that do not fit that profile.
“I encourage the DAs to step up to the reform table,” the Denver Democrat said. “I know there are victims, but that does not mean we just throw away kids.”
Staff writer Miles Moffeit can be reached at 303 820-1415 or mmoffeit@denverpost.com.
