In the past two years, 3rd District Juvenile Court Judge James Michie has noticed a shift in his courtroom.
Gone are those smaller cases where young Utahns had been accused of smoking weed or getting in a schoolyard fight. Now, those before his court are almost universally accused of more serious crimes, and are looking at more serious penalties.
That’s exactly what Michie and others involved in the juvenile justice system are hoping for.
It was two years ago that Utah lawmakers passed legislation that brought sweeping changes to the juvenile justice system. The goal was to emphasize early intervention, and keep low-risk offenders in their homes instead of detention centers.