LOUISVILLE, Ky. — A Louisville Republican lawmaker is pushing for major changes to Kentucky’s juvenile justice laws, seeking to hold both teens and their guardians more accountable.
Key Points:
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State Rep. Jared Bauman (R-Louville) is proposing a bill ahead of the 2026 legislative session that would lengthen the time teens can be held in detention and require guardians to pay for their child’s incarceration.
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The bill would also increase the length of probation and could eliminate FAIR teams (Family Accountability, Intervention, and Response), which were established under 2014 juvenile justice reforms to manage cases and diversion programs.
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Bauman argues that current laws don’t give the state enough time to intervene effectively and believes his proposal would better redirect juveniles toward a productive path.
Opposition and Concerns:
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Former State Sen. Whitney Westerfield, a supporter of the 2014 reforms, warned that the bill could revert the system to pre-2014 practices, which he says were less effective. He emphasized that the current law has reduced juvenile detention populations and improved public safety without increasing crime.
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Louisville Police Chief Paul Humphrey noted that the department focuses on violence intervention programs and stressed that parental accountability should target guardians actively enabling criminal behavior, rather than penalizing all parents.
The proposal is expected to spark debate in the upcoming legislative session, with supporters citing tougher accountability and opponents warning it could undermine a decade of juvenile justice reform.
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