At what impact does society face or will have to face for allowing a juvenile to be transferred and charged in an adult court? Should the society allow the juvenile to be charged as an adult? If the answer is a resounding “Yes” society will see the court handle the horrendous crime committed from said juvenile with a harsher punishment with a slim chance of a way out. Violence is met with the punishment it deserves. Also, this punishment will also be a deterrent and set the precedent for others to see and understand the implications of violence. On the flip side with a resounding “No” answer, the court sees and focuses on the intellect and moral capacity of said juvenile. Laws are in place to protect the vulnerability and the lack of moral …show more content…
There is a high probability that the society will have to deal with recidivism from our juveniles. What about redemption? Let us redeem our juveniles while they are still young and impressionable. “According to the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, juveniles who are tried as adults are 34 times to recidivate than their counterparts in juvenile jurisdiction.” Society needs to see our youth as redeemable – worth the effort. It is better to rehabilitate when they are still young than to lay down the harsh consequences and throw away the key. Our youth do not need to be forgotten. They are our future, and they need our inputted morals, values, maturity, and an honor system to adhere for guidance. Originally, the origin of juvenile courts was because society recognized the differences between the cognitive development of juveniles. Eventually, society shifted attitudes by their motto, “tough on crime” which led to transferring more frequently more juveniles to adult courts. The results of these policies have shown the recidivism rates for juveniles have increased when prosecuted in adult court versus juvenile court. Society has failed the system. Because of this failure, reforms needed to quickly be put in place so that we change the importance back on the best interests of the youth. Focusing on the youth instead of the crime with resources for the purpose of equipping them to succeed will help our juveniles reenter society. Inputting structured programs and guidelines is much more promising for succeeding rather than face the devastating effects of being housed in adult prison systems. Juveniles should not be treated as adults. They are juveniles in our court system. Revealing their errors of their ways with proper guidance and showing them the correct path to follow, an awareness is being shown of their wrongful actions. This awareness guides the youth to the correct way of living. Society needs to
There are indication that most criminals have a juvenile records in the US, indicating that crime manifests from a tender age. Therefore, to reverse the incidence of crime, it follows that the best strategy is to reduce the criminal orientation in the juvenile offenders as opposed to hardening them and preparing them for criminal careers. The case of the Crossroads Juvenile Center demonstrates the willingness of the juvenile justice systems to make these changes on the children. References Day, S. (2014). Runaway Man: A Journey Back to Hope.
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
The Juvenile system was first established around 1899 during the Progressives Era Reforms. The progressive era reform was the first system to actually try to reform juveniles due to the fact that they were being trialed as adults. Psychologist made developments with research on the psyche of the juveniles being trialed as adults not beneficial to the state of mind that some minors can’t comprehend at the adult level. The findings from the research that were conducted, made society change their views on the juvenile delinquency.
The violent crime rate among juveniles has grown at twice the rate compared to adults in the last two decades (Levitt, 1998). This fact shows that juveniles are constantly being given a slap on the wrist for the crimes adults get sent away for and the violent crime rate would not be inclining at the rate it is if they were processed as adults. Juveniles being processed as adults would decrease the rate due to the deterrence effect. There has been a rise in juvenile arrest rates for violent crimes due to the change in law and policies for juveniles that are less harsh when compared to adults (National Research Council, 2001). Juveniles know that the punishment they will receive for a crime is not harsh which leads them to commit more violent crimes.
It may seem that the juvenile criminal justice system is too lenient, but preventive and rehabilitative approaches can be utilized to minimize juvenile aggressive conduct; they have been proven to be effective through a study executed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) (Steenson 246). Through this research, it is evident that the measures taken by the juvenile criminal justice system are effective against violent delinquents. The help designated for juveniles is intended specifically for youth. Furthermore, some would argue that there is now a greater probability that juveniles will commit major and fatal crimes. Yes, it is true, but according to scientific studies, punitive methods used in adult court have minimal to no impact on adolescents incarcerated as adults, and the percentage of repeat offenders is higher in several states (Scialabba).
[CITE] Therefore, incarcerating young offenders is an ineffective way in preventing the juvenile rate. Instead, it increases their chance of recidivism. Although there is structure in correctional facilites, there is a lack of positive reinforcement
By sending these juveniles to an adult court, they are facing the risk of being punished more harshly than they would have been if they were convicted in a juvenile court. Once a juvenile is involved with the criminal justice system, they are more likely to reoffend and continue being involved with the criminal justice system as they become
Juveniles in prison face increased violence and sexual abuse, and are at much higher risks of committing suicide than juveniles in juvenile prisons. In addition, the number of released prisoners that turn back to crime is much higher for those that were juveniles in adult prisons. Juveniles will face the consequences of their actions in juvenile prisons, but will also be given a second chance to change their lives through rehabilitation. It is time to stop failing this nation’s juveniles and build a system that benefits not only these children, but society as a whole through the end of a vicious criminal
Young people should be given the opportunity of rehabilitation and redemption. The theory of deterrence is “predicated on the assumption that individuals weigh the costs and rewards associated with alternative actions, and select behaviors that maximize gains and minimize the cost” (Vago). The judgment and the ability to weigh the risks of a crime are not of an adult stage; therefore, there is an injustice present in the way the justice system prosecutes the youth of America. There is no reform proposed as “incarceration is used as the primary response to social problems” (NAACP). Instead of being offered treatment, “some of 10,000 children are housed in adult jails and prisons on any given day in America” (Children).
In order to eliminate crime, we must recognize the negligence that lies within the juvenile prison system. These major criminals often started out in the juvenile system, so if they receive the help they need as teenagers, we can curb the negative behavior and diminish
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..
Throughout the year, over 10,000 children in the United States are placed in adult prisons and jails. Children of any age depending of the circumstances can be placed in adult prisons surrounded with offenders who have done some heinous crimes. This can be a problem because the adults can delude the children between what is right and wrong. Juveniles should not be placed in an adult penitentiary due to the lack of morals being taught to them, the harmful effects that can occur to them mentally and physically, and the lack of education they will receive while being placed in a penitentiary. A juvenile offender's age could vary widely throughout the United States their are about half of the states have no minimum age requirement for a person to be tried as an adult.
There are differences between a juvenile court and criminal court in the United States. The focus of the juvenile justice system is on rehabilitation, in hope of deterring the minor away from a life of crime so they will not commit a crime again as an adult. In contrast, the criminal justice system focuses on the punishment and often bases the sentencing outcome on the criminal history of the youth. In a study conducted, Butler (2011) showed that the participants’ experience with adult jails and prisons show that those facilities may instill fear but are otherwise emotionally—and often physically—dangerous for youth. Many of the adult prisoners, who were minors when they enter the adult institution, felt they were forced to “grow
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.
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.