Military installations house some of the most important resources in our Commonwealth and our nation—most importantly, our military members and their families. These installations also occupy a unique legal position, in that they may be under federal jurisdiction, where the system is not designed to deal with certain elements of family law. The Department of Defense has identified this as a weakness that should be overcome, and we are set to introduce a package of bills that will establish concurrent federal and state jurisdiction over military installations to bolster the network of support we can provide to military families.
When military installations are under exclusive federal jurisdiction, military children may be forced through an adult judicial system, which lacks appropriate juvenile-focused resources and may result in military-connected juveniles being tried as adults while their peers off-base may be steered into more appropriate channels. Military families often face challenges that state resources and state courts may be better suited to address, including their mental health. Under our package of bills, installation authorities will be able to enter into a memorandum with state and local officials to define their working relationships and identify the best avenues for addressing juvenile misconduct of military-connected youth.
We hope you will join with us in sponsoring these bills that serve the Department of Defense’s mission to support military children and families.
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