Advocates concerned over Michigan criminal justice reform legislation

(CBS DETROIT) - On the whole, advocates and parents say they're excited to see some positive changes to Michigan's criminal justice laws, but one new requirement that calls for a set of screening questions for minors has them concerned.

Cole Williams said his introduction to Michigan's criminal justice system was through his son.

"I found myself involved in the criminal justice system by way of actually calling 911 on my son when he was about maybe 13 years old," he said.

Williams called the police as part of a family crisis plan for his son's behavior. He quickly realized how little control and little help he could lean on in the process.

"I was extremely desperate," he said.

His experience led to his creation of the nonprofit program The Delta Project and serving on a task force created by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer to recommend policy changes to Michigan's juvenile justice system. Williams said the changes set to be implemented in October are good ones.

"Being able to remove those court fees and fines from families is a huge step in the right direction in terms of supporting families," he said. "I think the other one that I'm really excited about is diversion, diverting kids who are first-time offenders."

It was bipartisan work in the legislature that got these reforms, among others, signed into law. But one bill is concerning to Williams.

"I think when we're talking about disparity amongst races, these are questions that are really connected to kids, families and their environment," he said.

They're questions like whether the minor's family members have been arrested before, if the minor has "difficulty controlling anger" and if they have a negative attitude towards the criminal justice system.

"All of these things are supposed to be determined in the moment when a young person might even be in the back of a squad car," said Jason Smith, executive director of the Michigan Center for Youth Justice.

Smith says these kinds of questions could disproportionately impact minors of color. He says he isn't against screening tools to determine risk;

"But the question should be appropriate," he said. "They should not drive racial disparities in the system or run the risk of increasing the use of detention."

The set of bills will go into effect on Oct. 1.