Lowers to 14 the age at which a minor can be tried as an adult in D.C. for some crimes

§1What it does

Why this matters: A plain-English description of the bill as it was voted on, written by us from the official summary and text.

✎ Drafted by AI from the public sources cited. Each sentence links to its source.

This bill would lower to 14 the age at which a young person in the District of Columbia can be tried as an adult for certain crimes.^2,3,4 Under current D.C. law, people under 18 are generally tried as juveniles in Family Court, but those 16 or older can be tried as adults when charged with murder, first-degree sexual abuse, first-degree burglary, armed robbery or assault with intent to commit any of those crimes.³ D.C. law also lets those 15 or older who are accused of a felony be moved to adult court if that serves the public welfare and there is no reasonable prospect of rehabilitation, and the bill lowers these age limits to 14 as well.^3,4 The version the House passed would apply only to offenses committed on or after the day the bill became law.⁴

§2Status

§3How Congress voted

Why this matters: The official count.