After a wave of draconian laws in the 1990s aimed at “superpredator youth,” some states are reconsidering their harsh approach. Florida Sen. Steven Geller hopes the Tate case will boost support for a law he’s proposed that would divert kids who are convicted in criminal court–and are under 15 and lack prior convictions–to a youthful-offender program for sentencing. An Illinois law passed last year gave the power to decide whether a juvenile should be tried as an adult from prosecutors back to judges. As for Tate, whose newest lawyer is Johnnie Cochran, Florida’s attorney general will decide in the next week whether to appeal last week’s decision. If he declines, Tate could be out on bond, temporarily free while he awaits a second trial.
