Juveniles Dont Deserve Life Sentences Analysis

The United States of America is the only country in which juveniles are allowed to be tried as adults with life without parole. As of today, approximately 3000 minors are condemned to life without the circumstance of parole (Stevenson). Children who carry out horrendous crimes should get the deserved punishment. Juveniles should be tried as adults with life without parole but only in certain cases: depending on their motive or modus operandi, their crime, and criminal background.

The article, “The Steep Costs of Keeping Juveniles in Adult Prisons” written by Jessica Lahey states, “Juveniles constitute 1,200 of the 1.5 million people housed in federal and state prisons in this country, and nearly 200,000 youth enter the adult criminal-justice system each year, most for non-violent crimes.” Minors should not be tried as adults because their brains are not developed, they may come from bad backgrounds, and they have their whole life ahead of them, and their life should not be determined by the mistakes they made as a child. Juveniles who are usually 14 or older who have committed serious crimes are tried as adults and are put into adult-state prisons. This is inhumane and unsafe for the child’s physical and mental health.

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.. In reality, if teens are old enough and mature enough to commit violent and vicious crimes, they should

In 2012, the Supreme Court ruled that it is immoral to give juveniles life sentences, even if they commit a crime as serious as murder, because it is a cruel and unusual punishment. This has been an issue in America as teenagers are often treated as adults in court due to a belief that their crimes warrant a harsh punishment. Many believe that these kids should not be given such major sentences because they are still immature and do not have the self control that adults do. I agree that juveniles do not deserve life sentences because they put less thought and planning into these crimes and they often are less malicious than adults.

“Thump! The jury finds you guilty! Three life sentences without parole!” the young boys and girls that hear this sentence generally aren’t considered the best of kids, however locking away a juvenile for life takes much more thought than it takes to address this sentence to a legal adult. In “Locked Away Forever” by Patricia Smith the question is attempted to be answered, which is should juveniles receive life sentences without chance of parole? In the article it states, “The court said that minors who commit terrible crimes are less responsible than adults: They are less mature, more susceptible to peer pressure, and their personalities are not yet fully formed.” In this quote the author is reasoning against life without parole because they are less mature and not fully developed. Although all crimes deserve proper punishment, juveniles should not receive life without parole because they are still developing and this punishment leaves no room for a second chance

A plethora of children in the United States is being tried as an adult consequently, 3000 children nationwide are sentenced to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole. Children under the age of eighteen should not be tried as an adult in the interest of the physical and mental well-being of the child. Many questions should be asked by the court before considering trying a child as an adult. What was the nature and nurture of the accused child? Was the child being abused? Was the child using self-defense in an attempt at extricating him or herself out of a precarious situation? Why would a child under the age of eighteen be tried as an adult? If a child is being tried as an adult because the juvenile court is considered too amiable

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.

Nathaniel Abraham is 11 years old and got the world questioning. Nathaniel had acted with murder. The action was displayed in Michigan of 1997. By then, a law in Michigan was created explaining, “a child of any age may be tried as an adult for severe crimes.” This law shows the fair, just process of criminal action towards all, not just the older. Many think otherwise, but in reality and fairness, anyone, especially with proven murder should certainly be tried as an adult.

Sentencing juveniles to prison happens to be a very controversial topic today. Many people believe that juveniles should receive the same consequences as an adult criminal and a vast amount of people believe that juveniles should be given a second chance. I personally believe that a child should not be given the same consequences as an adult so the question I would like to pose to my audience is should juvenile offenders be offered the same consequences as adult offenders?

In the United States prisons there are two thousand juveniles serving life without parole before, the age of eighteen. Only one of a few countries in the world allows children, to be sentenced to prison without release. And, the United States is one of them holding young teens accountable for their actions. But, there is accordance with age, stage development and how their cases should be dealt with in court. There are an estimated twenty-six percent of juveniles sentenced to prison for life convicted with felony murder. There is fifty-nine percent serving life without parole with a first time sentence. For example, there are twenty-six states that sentence life without parole being mandatory for anyone. So may feel, there is a racial issue

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. In fact they are quite clever. If juveniles are capable of committing heinous crimes who knows what else they are capable of. Yet not all crimes juveniles execute aren’t evil crimes and should not be treated in such a harsh way. Juveniles should be tried as

Juveniles should be convicted as adults for violent crimes because it is not fair for juveniles to commit big crimes and get away with it so easily. If they want to act like adults, they should be treated.

What if a kid committed a crime and didn't get sentenced as an adult for a murder? If you don't agree that kids or even teenagers shouldn't be sentenced to jail i think you're wrong because what if they did the crime to your kid or a family relative. I believed that they should be sent to juvenile hall or jail because a teenagner should be able to think what they’re doing and have the mentality that they're doing something really bad. For a kid it is a 50/50 because i also believe that they should know what they are doing is bad but then again they are kids. Teenagers should know they are doing because I know what am I doing but if they don't they need some help or they are really not teenagers. Teenagers should be capable of knowing what they're doing and what is a crime or not. I believe that life without parole for

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. As adults or as juveniles, according to how serious is the crime they committed.

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.