Lawmakers want to toughen laws on youngest offenders committing fraction of crimes

Maryland lawmakers are about to pass a bill they say will attack juvenile crime and improve public safety, but their top changes, which add strict penalties for 10- to 12-year-olds, may affect only a few dozen kids a year, state data shows. Some lawmakers have warned all along that the revisions aimed at young children accused of stealing cars and carrying handguns would reach a small number.