Raising the Age of Criminal Responsibility
Teachers' Guide and Resources
Students are invited to participate in a mock hearing at Advocacy Day in Austin on April 1, 2025. In this Teachers Guide, we are providing background information and links on the issue of raising the age of criminal responsibility in Texas. This guide is meant to be a tool for teachers to develop their own lesson plans based on the age groups of their students. Teachers should review all resources closely to be sure the reading level and content are age appropriate for their students.
"We need to participate for the common good. Sometimes we hear: a good Catholic is not interested in politics. This is not true: good Catholics immerse themselves in politics by offering the best of themselves so that the leader can govern." - Pope Francis
TEACHER PREPARATION
Review key vocabulary
Criminal responsibility, juvenile, prosecute, sentence, criminal record, offense, larceny, vandalism, assault, DWI, the dignity of the human person, the common good and social justice
Review Bills filed in the 89th legislative Session
TCCB supports two bills filed this session related to the age of criminal responsibility.
This bill changes the age of criminal responsibility, from 17 to 18. Additionally, individuals aged 18 or older but under 20, who committed offenses before turning 18, may still fall under juvenile court jurisdiction for specific purposes. The TCCB supports this bill to improve the likelihood of rehabilitating juvenile offenders.
Facts to Consider
- The variability of the crimes and the punishments
- Under the current law, parents do not need to be called if a 17-year-old is arrested
- The brain development of a 17-year-old and the capacity for criminal responsibility
- Conditions of juvenile detention facilities vs. adult detention facilities (i.e. jails/prisons)
- To research more on the topic, consider the following search terms:
- “Raise the Age” of criminal responsibility
- Why should juveniles be tried as adults Pros and Cons
- Should 17-year-olds be tried as adults?
Criminal Responsibility in Texas
Texas is one of only four states that automatically prosecutes 17-year-olds as adults (along with Georgia, Louisiana, and Wisconsin), meaning they will be tried in an adult court for any offense.
Juveniles are punished based on the severity of their crimes and their current criminal record.
It’s important to keep in mind that even if the age of criminal responsibility is raised to 18, for extremely serious or violent offenses, a juvenile court may waive its jurisdiction over a teen and transfer the case to adult criminal court. According to Tex. Fam. Code – FAM § 54:
- A 14-year-old can be placed in the adult criminal justice system if they allegedly committed (1) a capital felony, (2) a first-degree felony, or (3) an aggravated controlled substance felony.
- A 15-year-old can be placed in the adult criminal justice system if they have allegedly committed a second-degree or third-degree felony or a state jail felony.
Teens in these cases may be subjected to the same penalties as adults. In addition to age, the juvenile court evaluates other factors before deciding whether to transfer a teen to the adult justice system, including:
- The teen’s level of maturation and sophistication
- The teen’s previous record
- Whether the teen is thought to pose a danger to the public
- The likelihood that the juvenile can be rehabilitated
Just like an adult, the prosecutor must still pursue an indictment against the teen from a grand jury. The case will be dismissed if the grand jury does not return with an indictment and the case is not transferred back to juvenile court.
- The legislative committee and witnesses will be chosen from student volunteers.
- The committee members go to the stage and take their seats. There will be one chairperson of the committee, who will call on the witnesses and committee members to ask questions.
- The committee chairperson reads aloud the caption of the bill and invites up the first witness.
- Each witness called has no more than four minutes to present their testimony.
- The committee may ask follow-up questions. Not all speakers will be asked questions.
- The committee chairperson will keep the time and also call the committee to vote.
- The committee then has time to discuss the testimony that they heard and debate their positions for 3-5 minutes.
- The committee then votes on the bill to pass or not pass the ordinance. The committee chairperson announces the final decision.
Below you will find links to articles that can help better understand this topic. Before using these articles with students, teachers should carefully review them to be sure the content and reading level are appropriate for the age group.
- Raise the Age Legislation Seeks a ‘Smart’ Approach to Juvenile Crime | Michigan Catholic Conference
- Missouri Catholic Conference Update
- [2021 Session] “Raise the Age”: Hold 17-Year-Olds Accountable in the Juvenile Justice System | Texas CJE
- Raising the Age of Criminal Responsibility: There is a better way
- Faith coalition backs plan to raise age of juvenile offenders from 17 to 18
- How Do Raise the Age Laws Serve Youth and the Public? | The Imprint
- Stats - Does Treating Kids Like Adults Make A Difference? | Juvenile Justice | FRONTLINE | PBS
- Age Matrix | Interstate Commission for Juveniles
- Summary Juvenile Age of Jurisdiction and Transfer to Adult Court Laws
- After Juvenile Justice Reforms, Two States Return to Prosecuting More Teens as Adults
- Age Boundaries of the Juvenile Justice System
- Americans Divided on Treatment of Violent Juvenile Offenders
- A Long-Delayed Look at Youth Charged as Adults
TCCB has created a resource for those who are coming to the Capital to testify. You can review that here:
How to testify - Texas Catholic Conference
House and Senate FAQ’s:
Review the following key points with students regarding the legislative hearings:
- The state legislature is responsible for making laws.
- These laws should protect individual rights and promote the common good.
- To address our state’s problems and pass good laws, members of the legislature need to gather information.
- One way that members of the legislature get the information they need is by holding legislative hearings.
- A public hearing is where members of a legislative committee may gather information from affected state agencies and experts and hear testimony from the public regarding a bill.
- You can watch an archived House hearing here: https://house.texas.gov/videos/committees and an archived Senate hearing here: https://senate.texas.gov/av-archive.php.
- You can also watch a live broadcast of a committee hearing on both the Senate and House websites.
- If you are interested in reviewing archived footage from the committees who would be responsible for this topic, please see the following:
- For current 2025 session or live hearings - House Committee for Criminal Jurisprudence
- For archived hearings - House Subcommittee on Juvenile Justice
- For current, live, or archived hearings - Senate Committee for Criminal Justice
1. What is a mock hearing?
The state legislature is responsible for making laws. These laws should protect individual rights and promote the common good. An important part of the legislative process is a public hearing where members of a legislative committee may gather information from affected state agencies and experts and hear testimony from the public regarding a bill.
Note: A mock hearing is not the same as a mock trial or mock debate. Student participants do not need to be prepared to debate the issue, they need to be prepared to present their testimony on the topic and they should be prepared to answer questions related to their testimony.
For more information, you can watch archived House hearings or archived Senate hearings or a live broadcast of a committee hearing.
2. How many students can participate in the mock hearing?
We do not have a set number of students who can attend the mock hearing, however there will be a limit to how many will testify and serve as committee members. This will be determined once we receive all RSVPs and know how many students are interested. Each session will have 9 committee members and 6 students providing testimony (3 FOR/3 AGAINST). Note: Depending on the number of students attending, chaperone spots may be limited to provide enough seats for all student participants.
3. How can students participate in the mock hearing?
Student participants include committee members and those giving testimony.
1) Committee Members: These students will sit as part of the panel, hear testimony regarding raising the age of criminal responsibility, ask questions for clarification, then vote on this issue. They will vote “YAY” for in favor, or “NAY” for opposed.
2) Committee Chair: One student will be selected in each session to serve as a committee chair who will call the hearing to order, announce speakers, and keep time. This person will also call the committee to vote and announce the final decision.
3) Advocate For or Against Raising the Age: These individuals will provide testimony for or against raising the age of criminal responsibility. There will be 3 advocates FOR and 3 advocates AGAINST in each session. Testimony should be prepared in advance and should be no more than 4 minutes in length.
4) Members of the public: All other students will observe the proceedings.
4. Do students need to prepare in advance for the mock hearing?
We encourage students serving as committee members to watch a committee hearing online. Committee members will be provided with a script to follow. Committee members should prepare themselves by reviewing the topic so they can be ready to ask questions for clarification after the testimony is given.
Students giving testimony will need to prepare their testimony in advance. Teacher resources, a template, and a sample testimony will be provided to assist the students in preparing their testimony.
Teachers can also use the resources to help prepare all students for what to expect at the mock hearing and to help them understand the bill that we will discuss which is the proposal to raise the age of criminal responsibility in Texas from 17 to 18.
5. Is there a cost to participate in the mock hearing?
No, there is no cost to participate.
6. What time is the mock hearing?
The mock hearings run in four sessions. After the RSVP deadline, schools will be assigned to a session and can plan their other activities around their session time. The sessions do not overlap with the rally; therefore, all students can participate in the rally.
The four sessions are 9:00-10:00, 10:15-11:15, 12:15-1:15, and 1:30-2:30. When assigning schools to a session, we will be mindful of travel times to ensure students can make it on time.
7. Can students participate in other activities at the Capitol on Advocacy Day?
Yes, they are particularly invited to the rally on the south steps of the Capitol with the bishops and other Catholics present on April 1. The rally begins at 11:30 am. After the rally complimentary grab-and-go lunches are available from a vendor on the west side of the Capitol grounds. Other activities can be planned by the school or arch/diocese.
8. What should students wear?
Students are encouraged to wear their school uniforms or apparel provided by their arch/diocese.
Additional questions related to the mock hearing can be sent to Dr. Ashley Altizer.