On July 4, 2025, Vance A. Mims III was shot after a New York State sponsored event on the South Mall in Albany, NY. He passed away thirteen days later from his injuries, his life taken in an intentional and senseless act of violence. Vance was a young man on his grind: going to school, working, and preparing for his senior year of high school. He was doing what was right, staying out of the way, and planning for his future. Instead, his family, friends, and community are left grieving an unimaginable loss, while those responsible, because of their age, may not be held fully accountable under current law.

     New York’s Raise the Age law, enacted in 2017, prohibits 16 and 17 year-olds from being held in adult facilities. The individuals responsible for Vance’s death were under the age of 16, which shields them from meaningful accountability. While the law was intended to protect juveniles, it creates a loophole in cases of extreme violence. Without change, families like Vance’s are left without justice, and offenders avoid consequences for crimes that devastate entire communities. What is at stake is simple: whether our laws protect only offenders, or whether they also protect victims and ensure accountability. If you do not believe that amending the law is the best way to fix this, then we ask that we sit at the table, and figure this out for together!

    We cannot stand by while our system fails victims’ families. If we do not act now, more lives will be lost, more parents will bury their children, and more communities will be shattered by preventable violence. This is the moment to demand reform whether by amending the Raise the Age law to include proper accountability for offenders, and/or by holding parents accountable when their children commit heinous crimes. Now is the time to speak out, to demand accountability, and to honor Vance’s name by making him the foundation of change.

We thank you for signing and for standing with us.

— The Family and Friends of Vance A. Mims III