Saturday, September 27, 2008

Teen jurors weigh case, use their hearts in sentencing

Clara Garcia News-Bulletin Staff Writer; cgarcia@news-bulletin.com

Belen Standing in front of a judge and a jury of his peers, a teenage boy has to explain why he was speeding, driving without a license and without a registration earlier this month.

While these types of cases are not a rarity in Belen Municipal Court, 16-year-old Jude Silva is one of the first respondents to be sentenced in the new Valencia County Teen Court. Silva and a 12-year-old boy were referred and volunteered to participate in the new program, which in essence, is designed to educate first-time offenders while giving them a second chance.

The mission of the Valencia County Teen Court is to help juvenile offenders restore their relationship with the community through accountability and personal development.

Peers of the teenagers serve as jurors, court clerks and bailiffs. Teens, ages 12 to 17, are given alternative sentences for misdemeanor offenses such traffic violations, shoplifting, possession of marijuana and disorderly conduct. Sentences include having to write letters of apology, a minimum of 10 hours community service and serving on the jury.

The jurors will not, however, decide if the respondent committed the crime, since participants must admit to their violation in order to have their cases referred to Teen Court. Teen Court is a way for eligible teens to keep their records clean; if they successfully complete their sentences, the charges are dismissed.

Those teens that volunteer to serve as teen court personnel were chosen from area high schools and may be awarded extra credit for their participation, said Lynnette Pinkston, one of the members of the Teen Court steering committee.

During the latest Teen Court hearing, two teenagers and their parents stood in front of Belen Municipal Court Judge Kathy Savilla and a three-member teen jury to explain their actions. Once the hearing started, Savilla swore everyone in, including the jury.

The first case to come before the jury was that of a 12-year-old Belen boy who was cited and pleaded guilty for having an off-road vehicle (ATV) on the roadway earlier this month.

"It's your duty to determine what sentence is fair and appropriate," Savilla told the jury. "We live in a small community, and many people know each other here."

Savilla asked the jury if they felt they could give the boy a fair and impartial verdict. All three jurors said yes. The judge then asked the respondent if he was comfortable having these three particular jurors hand down a fair verdict. He said he was.

When asked to explain what occurred that day, the boy told the jury that he had just got off of school and had gone home. "Nobody was there, so I got my four-wheeler and went to my mom's house," he told the jury. "When I was coming back, I saw my friends and stopped and talked to them — that's when the cop saw me."

One juror asked the boy if he would have felt guilty about what he did if he had not been caught. He replied yes.

Another juror asked what punishment he received from his parents.

"I was grounded, and I got stuff taken away," he said.

"I took the key (to the four-wheeler) away," said his mom, who also explained that he didn't have permission to ride the vehicle that day. "He is no longer allowed to drive it. I took his phone away for about a week, but he got that back because he's always riding his bike around and I get nervous when he doesn't have his phone. I also took his video games away for a while as well."

After the jury deliberated for about five minutes, they returned and handed down the sentence — 15 hours of community service, four days as a Teen Court juror and he has to write a page and a half about the dangers of riding a four-wheeler on the roadway.

The second case involving Silva was a little harder for the jury to hear. Silva explained that, yes, he violated the law, but he said he felt he had no choice that particular day.

On Sept. 6, Silva was stopped for driving 51 miles per hour in a 40 mph zone. When police questioned him, they learned he didn't have a driver's license and couldn't produce registration information.

"I was going to my grandpa and grandma's house because I had just learned my mom had just passed away," Silva said. "I had no way to get over there, and that's why I used the truck."

One juror asked if he had realized that he was driving too fast. Silva said all he was thinking was that he needed to get to his grandparent's house as fast as possible. Another juror asked if that was the only vehicle he had or if there was another available for him to drive that day.

"No, but to tell you the truth, it was registered, but I didn't have the papers," Silva explained. "It's my grandpa's, and they had it registered, but when I was cleaning it out, I accidentally threw the papers away in the trash."

His grandparents also punished him for getting the tickets. Not only did he have to clean their yard, but he's also not allowed to drive until he gets his license.

Another juror asked Silva what, if he were a parent, what he would do. Silva said if it were the same situation, he wouldn't do anything because of the circumstances.

After deliberating for about 10 minutes, the jury foreman announced Silva's sentence — 15 hours of community service and three nights of jury duty.

"This is our minimum sentence," the jury foreman explained. "We feel that the circumstances surrounding the violations were pretty harsh, and he didn't have a whole lot of other options."

After the verdict was read, Savilla thanked the jury for their service and told them that she believed they made a good and wise decision.

Silva, who could have been sentenced to a maximum of 30 hours of community service and five nights of jury duty for his offenses, said afterwards that the sentence was fair.

"My mom was born with a hole in her heart, and she's had heart surgeries her whole life," Silva said. "She was only 36. When I heard she passed away, I just wanted to get to my grandpa's. When you hear something like that, you're not thinking."

Silva said he believes going through Teen Court is an ideal option because the violation won't go on his record. He said he hopes others will learn from what happened to him and that he will talk to his friends about it.

"It's embarrassing," Silva said. "I'm just glad it's over."

Pinkston said more than 100 students have already signed up to volunteer as jurors from all three high schools in the Valencia County. Teen Court sessions will be held every Tuesday at 6 p.m. and the locations will shift from courtrooms in Los Lunas, Belen, Bosque Farms and Isleta.

Referrals to Valencia County Teen Court will be made by magistrates and municipal judges as well as the juvenile probation and parole officers. Judges presiding in Teen Court will be either sitting judges in Valencia County, on a volunteer basis, or elected officials selected by the Valencia County Teen Court Steering Committee.

The Teen Court steering committee, is headed by Chair Magistrate Tina Gallegos, along with the Vice Chair Rebecca L. Avitia, an assistant district attorney for the 13th Judicial District. The steering committee meets monthly to evaluate the development and effectiveness of Teen Court.

Members of the committee include Valencia County Commissioner Lynette Pinkston, Belen Municipal Judge Kathy Savilla, Juvenile Probation and Parole Officer Amelia Garcia, New Mexico State Police Lt. John Quinones, Public Defender Greg Gaudette and Valencia County Juvenile Justice Administrator Joseph Dorn. It will also include student members from each high school. The next Teen Court session will be held on Oct. 7, in the Los Lunas Magistrate Courthouse before Judge Tina Gallegos.

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