The age of accountability or the “age of innocence” is a term that refers to children being an inappropriate age to face consequences for their actions. In the story of the six year old male student bringing a weapon to school and shooting his classmate, our legal system claims that he is of an age that will not allow him to face legal repercussions. In this case study, examples of why this theory of innocence in children younger than 7 is a legitimate stance will be discussed. Most states have provisions for determining how a crime was tried in the state. In 16 states, the minimum age for seeing juveniles in a criminal court was fourteen years of age. In Vermont and Kansas the minimum age requirement is ten years of age. All of this being …show more content…
222) can explain why children are unbalanced in their emotions and demonstrate “poor impulse control” (Berger, 2013, p. 223). This maturation of the brain takes place during the years of two to 12. Berger, 2013 also states that the ability to control impulses and behavior is closely related to the culture in which the child was raised which leads us to the next reason which is maltreatment in the home. Maltreatment and …show more content…
275). Children between these ages are not able to control their emotions and reactions to certain situations. It is a practice and developmental maturation known as effortful control. So under the age of seven this control is not yet present. Even though Berger says that temper tantrums should subside and emotions should become more regulated around the age of five, it still takes time to develop and master. In conclusion, this child demonstrated at his age of six years old the inability to control emotional responses, and the social culture and home life in which he was being raised in. At six years of age his prefrontal cortex is still developing and his inability to master emotional regulation and differentiate between fantasy and reality is obvious in the tragedy that occurred. His parents should therefore be deemed the responsible party for his actions and the law that states any child under the age of seven should fall within the age of innocence is a legitimate claim due to psychological and psychosocial
Each year in the United States, children as young as 13 years old are sentenced to spend the rest of their lives in prison without any chance of getting released. There has been a worldwide agreement declaring that children cannot be held to the same standards of responsibility as adults and it is recognized that children are entitled to special protection and treatment. There are three types of juvenile waivers that have been allowing juveniles to be treated as adults in adult court. The Miller v. Alabama case is a step toward more just treatment of juvenile offenders following several decades’ worth of harsh treatment of youthful offenders. For over a century, states have believed that the juvenile justice system was the main way to protect
In Queensland, the age of criminal responsibility is currently set at 10 years old, a threshold that has generated significant debate among legal experts, youth advocates, and community organisations. While some argue that the current age is too low and fails to account for the developmental maturity of young children, others persist that it is appropriate and necessary for maintaining law and order in the community. This report will examine the legal nature and scope of the age of criminal responsibility in Queensland, with a focus on the age from which children can be held criminally responsible. By analysing opposing viewpoints and acknowledging the key principals of law in Australia, this report aims to provide a comprehensive assessment of the issues surrounding age of criminal responsibility in
Placing children and teenagers in jail results in negative effects rather than rehabilitation. The juvenile justice system in America is complex and varies from state to state, but the overarching purpose is to rehabilitate youth offenders. It processes nearly 1.7 million cases a year and overall handles most of them the same way (“Youth Involved in the Juvenile Justice System”). When those under age go to trial, their sentence often is decided by how likely they are to be rehabilitated and learn from their mistakes (“Juvenile justice”).
For example, Nathaniel Brazill was 13 years old when he was guilty of shooting a middle school and charged with second degree murder. He says that he made a “stupid mistake” but was convicted of second degree murder not first. In the article, “Startling Finds on Teenage Brains” it says that, “a child is not a man.” Meaning that a child shouldn 't be getting treated as an adult no they
Annotated bibliography Childress, S. (2016, June 2). More States Consider Raising the Age for Juvenile Crime. Retrieved from PBS: http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/frontline/article/more-states-consider-raising-the-age-for-juvenile-crime/ More states are considering to raising the age for juvenile crimes before being tried as adult because young offender's mental capacity. The idea is to cut the cost of incarcerate young offender in adult prison and ensure offenders to receive proper education and specialized care to change their behavior. Putting children in adult prison does not deter crime.
" Journal of consulting and clinical psychology 61.2 (1993): 335. Summary: Ann S. Masten, in the article, “Children in
When kids that are only 16 and 17 are tried in adult court, studies have shown that these teens are more likely to commit crimes and serious offenses. For this reason some kids get into a cycle of trials, Juvy, and release because that is all they know how to do, because when they are released they don’t know how to live a normal life.
I always thought juveniles who committed crimes would be tried for their age, but consequently, within the past few years more young teens have been tried as adults, and forced into life-long sentences and even in some cases, death row. In one case Stevenson worked with a young girl named Trina Garnett had been in a house fire and was blamed for ‘intentionally’ starting the fire. Within the trial, the Judge who was ruling the case declared Trina had no intent to kill. One thing Stevenson mentioned was that “Under Pennsylvania Law, the judge could not take the absence of intent into account during sentencing” (page 150). Trina was convicted of second-degree murder at age sixteen.
In the article, “Prison for Young Killers Renews Debate on Saving Society’s Lost” by Don Terry, Terry talks about the debate on how to treat a twelve year old and a thirteen year old that had dropped a five year old child out a 14-story window. Both boys, whose names were not given, had lived in a dangerous neighborhood and had all the adults in their lives fail them. Also, both of their IQs fall below the average IQ of a normal person. Each state had called for a harsh punishment for the boys. The age for being put into a maximum security juvenile prison had been lowered to a ten years of age.
These three ethical issues that are rising in the juvenile justice system will be further examined. Should adolescents be held to the same level of accountability for their actions as adults? LaBelle
Even children have the capability to act and think the way as an adult would. Juveniles need to be held accountable for their actions because it was their actions that caused for them to be put in such a situation. 13 year old Derek King and his 12 year old brother, Alex, were being charged of bludgeoning their father, Terry King, to death. In the book, “Angels of Death,” by Gary C. King stated, “I hit him once and then I heard him moan and then I was afraid that he might wake up and see us, so I just kept on hitting him... I threw the bat on the bed, lit the bed on fire because I was scared of the [evidence] and everything.
16 is too young because at this age kids have just begun their mature stage.
Can you imagine waking up behind closed walls and bars? Waking up to see your inmate who is a 45-year-old bank robber and you are a 14-year-old minor who made a big mistake. This is why minors who have committed crimes should not be treated the same as adults. Some reasons are because the consequences given to minors in adult court would impact a minor’s life in a negative way. If a minor is tried through a juvenile court, they have a greater chance of rehabilitation.
If we look at the different criminal justice systems around the world, most countries have laws or regulations stating the “age of criminal responsibility” (Maher. G). However, there has been no clear international standard identified regarding the age at which criminal responsibility could be reasonably charged for a juvenile offender. The Convention on the Rights of Children (CRC) appeals parties to establish ‘a minimum age below which children shall be
According to Elisabeth Kübler-Ross children undergo five stages of loss i.e. Denial, Anger , Bargaining, Depression, Acceptance/Hope. She was an Swiss-American psychiatrist. Five stages of loss as follows: Five stages of loss 1. Denial 2.