# 119-hr-5140: To lower the age at which a minor may be tried as an adult for certain criminal offenses in the District of Columbia to 14 years of age.

119-hr-5140, To lower the age at which a minor may be tried as an adult for certain criminal offenses in the District of Columbia to 14 years of age., is a 119th Congress bill sponsored by Rep. Gill, Brandon [R-TX-26] (R-TX); status passed_house (as of 2026-07-15).

- Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-5140
- As of: 2026-07-15
- Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts.

## Facts
- Bill: 119-hr-5140
- Congress: 119
- Title: To lower the age at which a minor may be tried as an adult for certain criminal offenses in the District of Columbia to 14 years of age.
- Status: passed_house
- Introduced: 2025-09-04
- Sponsor: Rep. Gill, Brandon [R-TX-26] (R-TX)
- Cosponsors: 6
- Policy area: Crime and Law Enforcement
- Touches household money: no
- Last recorded action: 2026-07-15

## Summary

**This bill would lower District of Columbia juvenile-age thresholds so some youths as young as 14 can be excluded from Family Court and moved into criminal proceedings.** It replaces references to "fifteen" and "sixteen" with "fourteen" in the cited D.C. Code sections, applying to offenses committed on or after enactment. - Families: Parents and caregivers could see 14- and 15-year-olds handled in criminal court rather than Family Court for offenses after the law takes effect. - Youths: Young people who previously fell under juvenile-only processes at 15 or 16 could be subject to criminal transfer starting at 14. - Courts and prosecutors: The change extends criminal-justice processing to younger minors under the cited D.C. Code sections, shifting some cases away from Family Court.

## Cosponsors (6)

- Rep. Burchett, Tim [R-TN-2] (R-TN), 2025-09-08T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Higgins, Clay [R-LA-3] (R-LA), 2025-09-09T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Downing, Troy [R-MT-2] (R-MT), 2025-09-11T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Luna, Anna Paulina [R-FL-13] (R-FL), 2025-09-15T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Wilson, Joe [R-SC-2] (R-SC), 2025-09-16T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Stefanik, Elise M. [R-NY-21] (R-NY), 2025-09-17T00:00:00.000Z

## Votes

| Date | Chamber | Question | Result | Yea | Nay |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 2025-09-16T00:00:00.000Z | house | On Passage | Passed | 225 | 203 |

## Provisions PRIA read

- Adult trials for 14- and 15-year-olds in D.C.: cost, low. This bill would lower the age when D.C. can move a case from Family Court to adult court. Prosecutors could seek adult charges for some 14- and 15-year-olds. It replaces age limits of 15 and 16 with 14 in D.C. law. It would apply only to alleged crimes on or after the date it becomes law. Families…

## Related bills

- 119-hr-9298: Stopping Harmful and Outrageous Torts Act
- 119-hr-987: Fair Access to Banking Act
- 119-hr-404: Hearing Protection Act
- 119-hr-425: Repealing Big Brother Overreach Act
- 119-hr-45: FIND Act
- 119-hr-38: Constitutional Concealed Carry Reciprocity Act of 2025

## Sources
- [119-hr-5140 on Congress.gov](https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/house-bill/5140)

## Related
- [119-hr-9298: Stopping Harmful and Outrageous Torts Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-9298)
- [119-hr-987: Fair Access to Banking Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-987)
- [119-hr-404: Hearing Protection Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-404)
- [119-hr-425: Repealing Big Brother Overreach Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-425)
- [119-hr-45: FIND Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-45)
- [119-hr-38: Constitutional Concealed Carry Reciprocity Act of 2025](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-38)
- [All bills in Congress](https://policyrisk.com/legislation)

Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-5140 (as of 2026-07-15).