Passed in 2018, House Bill 6160 (also referred to as JR to 25) allows young people sentenced in adult court for crimes committed under age 18 to go to Juvenile Rehabilitation (JR) until age 25. Before the bill, JR residents had to transfer to the Department of Corrections on their 21st birthday to serve the rest of their sentence. In this short video, a former JR resident shares his journey to help implement the bill and how its passing provided him the opportunity to transfer to a less restrictive community facility where he was able to find a job in the community and prepare for successful reentry.
“When I do get out… I already have job experience. I can put that on my resume. I have references. So when I go somewhere, [employers] recognize they can trust me with their business when they’re not there. They can put me in charge and they know I’m going to do the right thing,” said the former JR resident.