Recently, I addressed the NC Commission on the Administration of Law & Justice public hearing held in Wilmington, NC, advocating raising the age from 16 to 18 years old for prosecution under the adult justice system. There are only 2 states that prosecute 16- and 17-yr-olds as adults, North Carolina and New York. In 48 other states teenagers under the age of 18 are handled in the juvenile justice system. But in North Carolina if you are a day over 16 and break the law, you are tried as an adult and face the same punishment as any other lawbreaking adult. For many, this could mean spending...