Why Teens Should Be Tried As Adults Most rapists, murderers, and other criminals are walking out of jail after only serving short sentences. These criminals are juveniles who commit heinous, adult crimes. When the criminals are released, they’re given new identities to protect themselves and continue a peaceful life, while their victims and their family are living every day with fear and pain. The court system and juvenile supporters believe all juveniles should be given a second chance, and because of this, criminals are our neighbors, walking down the street, and are in public places. Just because someone is released from juvenile hall or prison, that doesn’t mean they learned their lesson. Some criminals continue with their bad behavior …show more content…
More specifically, she argues that juveniles can change and be rehabilitated if given opportunities they can grow out of crime and will no longer pose a threat to society. She asserts the superpredator theory is unfounded. The court system realizes kids aren’t adults and that’s why they can’t be sentenced to death. In this passage, Garinger is suggesting that judges and juries wait till the person is an adult to sentence their sentencing. In conclusion, Garinger’s belief is that juveniles can change so they should be tried as adults. In my view, Garinger is wrong because teenagers should be tried as adults if they commit heinous crimes. More specifically, I believe that if teenagers or children are old enough to plan out and commit adult crimes, they’re old enough to do adult time. For example, in the PBS Frontline Juvenile Justice, 17 year old Manny and two gang members attacked a family in his neighborhood. He repeatedly beat a 6 month pregnant woman with a baseball bat, assaulted four men, and stabbed two. While in juvenile hall, Manny showed no remorse. When he was asked if he was sorry, he said he was sorry because he’s locked up- not because of the crimes he committed. He also implied that he’d kill or hurt someone again if they were to
Teens are being tried as adults who commit felonies when we have a juvenile system. These 3 articles focus on Who, how, why, percent, and what should happen to these teens. The author Scott Anderson uses Greg Ousley as an example to advocate for teenagers who have committed a felony to be tried in the juvenile court system. Greg Ousley was instead tried as adult and was guilty of parricide, who is serving two 30 year sentences.
There persists a heated and controversial debate nationwide as to whether, under any circumstances, a juvenile should be tried as an adult and sentenced to life in prison without parole. While recent efforts to ease the punishment have reduced the ultimate sentence for juveniles to forty years in some areas, the problem remains unaddressed at its root. Juveniles should not be sentenced as adults to life without parole because they lack in cognitive development, have rehabilitative capacity, and cost more annually to be held in prison than to be put through programs that address the root of the problem. First and most importantly, Juveniles should not be tried and sentenced as adults for life because the adolescent brain is in a period of cognitive
There are certain instances of juveniles being tried as adults and sometimes ending up getting a life sentence without a chance of parole. I find that pretty harsh because there have been some cases where the juvenile meant no harm, they were either confused or brought along by gang members and they end up being charged along with the gang members for just being with them when a crime goes down. I believe that juveniles do not deserve to be given a life sentence because for one they are still maturing, they can learn from their mistakes and make amends, we still have to combat crimes like intended murder committed by a juvenile with extreme punishments especially if they are well over the age of 16. In the article published by the New York Times on March 14, 2012 “Juveniles Don’t Deserve Life Sentences”, Garinger discusses that juveniles deserve a second chance since their brains are still developing.
One reason for trying juveniles as adults is to show them that no matter what the age of the accused, the crime was still committed. Juveniles treated as adults show these 17 year olds that crime is crime. It should be punished. It makes crimes equal and allows for more justice. Trying juveniles as adults helps deter the crime rate by making more severe punishments available to juvenile delinquents.
The article “Juveniles Don’t Deserve Life Sentences” argues that children in prison need to be given a chance to mature and be rehabilitated (Garinger 9). Because these killers likely committed these crimes on impulse, they would often realize after the fact that they were wrong to do such an action. Therefore, when they are released, they will be more careful and think about their actions before committing. If they are given a life sentence, they will never be given this chance to fix their life. Older people who commit murders are less likely to learn from their mistakes since they put more thought into the killing than adolescents
This doesn’t mean adolescents can’t make rational decisions, but it does mean that they are more likely to act impulsively. Juvenile offenders should not be tried as adults because they lack the ability to fully comprehend their actions, and this process of conviction does not encourage adolescents to become functional members of society.
The criminal justice system was created in order to punish people who choose to break the law. Some people believe they are above the law and decided to do whatever they like regardless of the consequences. Children and adults are both responsible for the actions they commit. The criminal justice should tried children as adults for committing felonies because a crime is a crime regardless of the age of the individual. This can be fulfilled by punishing juvelives with the correct sentence, by seeing that they know their actions lead to consequence and they have the proper process for a teen to be tried as adult.
Why should teen felons get to spend their jail time in juvenile detention centers for committing the same crimes as adults? In today’s world, teens are increasingly committing violent crimes and being put in juvenile detention centers. Teens need to be tried as adults because it helps to bring justice to families of victims, and it also teaches the teens accountability. Charging teens as adults will also help reduce crime in the United States. Although many people feel that teens should not be given severe punishments because they are immature and innocent, they have not considered the problem teens are creating by committing these crimes..
Juveniles should be tried as adults due to being aware of their crimes and having an intention to kill, however, brain development and maturity can play a role into the reason why teens kill. With being tried as an adult juveniles should be granted the opportunity of freedom pending on their rehabilitation status and if requirements are not met, convicts will have to complete the remainder of their sentence. People have long argued that juveniles who commit a murder should not be tried as an adult due the juvenile not being aware of their crime. Awareness, as defined by the Webster Dictionary, is “the knowledge and understanding that something is happening or exists”. Having the perception to comprehend the occurrence of an event is not a dumbfounded characteristic.
In our society, crimes are being committed not only by adults but by juveniles as well. By law as soon as a person turns 18 they are considered to be an adult. So what if an adult and a juvenile were to commit the same crime yet were sentenced differently simply based on the fact that one is a child and one is an adult? Juveniles are committing violent crimes just as adults and should be given the equal treatment and sentencing as adults receive. Juveniles aren’t completely ignorant as everyone seems to think.
Juvenile crime has been a growing concern in society. “Many JLWOP offenders are repeated violent offenders and many have killed multiple people.” ( Jennifer Jenkins)While some argue that minors should be treated differently than adults, others believe that juveniles who commit serious crimes should be charged as adults. Juvenile crime has become a controversial issue as many incidents of minors committing violent and serious offenses continue to increase. While the juvenile system is designed to rehabilitate young offenders, some believe that this is not enough for those that engage in serious criminal activities.
Juvenile Justice Should juveniles get treated as adults that’s one of the biggest controversy in our nation now days, with many juveniles committing crimes that are inconceivable according to their age. Judges have the last word on how to treat this young people. Many people argue that “the teens that are under eighteen are only kids, they won’t count them as young adults, not until they commit crimes. And the bigger the crime, the more eager this people are to call them adults” (Lundstrom 87). This is why people can’t come to a decision as how these young people should be treated like.
Some people believe that juveniles shouldn’t get sentenced to life in prison because of brain studies, age, and the way of living. Recent brain studies have suggested that teenagers suffer from brain-tissue loss, this might be the reason why they commit idiotic decisions. In Gail Garingers article “Juveniles Don’t Deserve Life Sentences” she states “Young people are biologically different from adults.” Then she talks about the young adolescents being sentenced to die in prison. Also how there is a myth about the superpredator and how children are hopelessly
Over the years, the Supreme Court has argued and questioned whether teenagers should be tried as adults, precisely when committing a felony. But there are countless deviations from this
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.