What does a law and order conservative like yourself think about keeping juvenile criminal records sealed?I am cautiously in favor of keeping juvenile records sealed.
The problem with it is the same as with anything to which an absolute rule is applied--circumstances vary. In the case of juvenile offenders, it is a matter of differing maturity levels. Sometimes a group of twelve year olds break into a house to steal video games. Other times, a group of twelve year olds break into a house and gang rape a nine year old girl. The former is likely a youthful indiscretion or failure of parenting that may not lead to an adult life of crime. The latter is a high indication those kids are not fit to participate in civilized society.
What I depend on is a rare bit of optimism. I assume youthful indiscretions can be fixed, so there is no good reason to hound a juvenile offender on into adulthood. I am also confident that heinous crimes committed by juveniles carry punishments which extend into adulthood. They are plenty of juveniles who have committed serious crimes transferred to regular prison after turning eighteen.
I am realistic to know keeping records sealed is not a perfect idea regardless of how the kid turns out, but it is fair over all. One can hope the failures cause minimal damage. I am shooting from the hip here. Someone with more experience in juvenile law tham me, which should be just about anyone else with a law degree, could give you a far more rationalized opinion.