Senator Creem has served in a public capacity for more than 30 years, first as a member and President of the Newton Board of Aldermen, and then as a member of the Governor’s Council prior to becoming a State Senator in 1999. Among her top priorities since entering the Legislature, Cindy has been the leading advocate for restoring judicial discretion in sentencing and eliminating across-the-board mandatory minimum sentences, and for increasing safeguards for gun ownership.
Majority Leader Sen. Creem has been appointed by Senate President Spilka as one of two co-chairs of the Task Force on Emerging Adults in the Criminal Justice System to examine and study the treatment of individuals ages 18-24 in the court and corrections systems and the impacts of the treatment on those emerging adults. This task force was established pursuant to Section 221 of Chapter 69 or the Acts of 2018.
“Criminal Justice Reform, especially Juvenile Justice, has been one of my top legislative priorities for many years and I am pleased to be appointed as one of the co-chairs of this Task Force to explore these important issues,” said Creem. “Our young adults deserve a justice system that understands and responds to their unique needs.”
The task force will study two distinct major topics. First, the task force will evaluate the advisability, feasibility and impact of changing the upper age of juvenile court jurisdiction to defendants younger than 21 years of age. Second, the treatment of 18- to 24-year-olds in the current correctional system will be examined. The task force will make recommendations for the establishment and implementation of targeted age-appropriate programming and the establishment of young adult correctional units, and specialized training of some corrections officers on the needs of emerging adults.