Every year in the United States, an estimated 250,000 children under the age of 18 are tried and imprisoned as adults. In fact, about 100,000 of these children end up in adult jails and prisons. Fourteen states in the U.S don’t even have a minimum age for trying children as adults. This topic has caused great debate all across the nation. While many people are in favor of trying children as adults, others are not very fond of the idea and strongly disagree. There are many thoughts, considerations and ‘what ifs’ people bring up when speaking of this topic. I personally think that it depends on both what the kid did and how old he/she was. I asked both teens and adults for their opinion on this topic. The majority of teens agreed that no children
In the article,” The Steep Costs of Keeping Juveniles in Adult Prisons,” author Jessica Lahey subsequently claims, “ Juveniles constitute 1,200 of the 1.5 million people housed in federal and state prisons in this country, and nearly 200,000 youths enter the adult criminal-justice system each year, most for non-violent crimes. On any given day, 10,000 juveniles are housed in adults prisons and jails.” Reluctantly, juveniles are not given the opportunity in these circumstances to plead for their background story, nor do they receive the opportunity to engage towards their future. As the arguments began to rise throughout the years, the percentage on juveniles being tried as adults has also rose resulting in a more repetitive solution for these
According to “Kids in Prison” by Brian Hansen, juveniles are being tried as adults for violent and non-violent crimes. Kids being tried as adult is the most controversial topic the world cannot agree on today. It is hard to pick one side due to every case being a different situation, but I think I have established a well-thought opinion. Children should not be tried as adults due to their level of cognitive capability, proneness to harm in adult prisons, and their inability to be rehabilitated in a harmful environment. First, a child’s cognitive thinking is at a different level than an adult’s, so a child does not have the means to survive in an adult prison.
Roper v. Simmons is considered a landmark case and is one of a handful that shows a new direction in granting some relief from what has been established as harsh “adult” punishments for juveniles (Elrod & Ryder, 2014). In fact, many studies are showing that the differences between adults and juveniles are quite significant (Elrod & Ryder, 2014). The courts are realizing that these differences must be taking into account when dealing with juveniles in the criminal justice system (Elrod & Ryder, 2014). However, that being said, change does not occur overnight, and for the unforeseeable future, juveniles will still continue to be waived into adult courts (Elrod & Ryder, 2014).
Children are not Adults The controversial issue of juvenile crime is a frequently intangible topic. Naturally, most people find the idea of a young child committing a severe crime very appalling, as no one expects a wide-eyed child to engage in such a heinous act of misconduct. In the essay “Adult Crime, Adult +30Time”, Linda J. Collier affirms that children who engage in adult conduct should undoubtedly be sent to an adult prison (Collier 608). Clearly, a child should be penalized for a corrupt act such as murder, but, Ms. Collier’s solution is considerably harsh for a child of such a young age. In the order of criminal justice, a young child should certainly not be disciplined in the same manner as an adult.
America has the most overpopulated prisons in the world and that is because we would rather put a person (or in this case child) in prison for life than address the root of the situation. Data analyzed by Ashley Nellis, Ph.D., Research Analyst with The Sentencing Project, a project that advocates for the reform of justice policies and tackles the disparities in race and gender in the criminal sphere, reported, “ Survey research in the past 10 years consistently shows a majority of the respondents to favor trying juveniles in adult court for serious felonies, with roughly 75% of the typical adults surveyed believing that violent juvenile offenders should be treated as adults” (Neils) this attitude towards juvenile criminals is insidious to America’s youth, and does nothing to lower the crime rate. The real question is not when should juveniles receive life sentences, but how can we prevent it? How can we reform the Juvenile Court System in a way that actually addresses the crimes (and the needs) of Juvenile criminals so that they can be punished, rehabilitated, and reintroduced to society to actually love their lives? It is not until we see the bigger picture that we can make this
An average juvenile was involved in an argument with his teacher and took a gun and shot him without any intentions. When on trial, he realized that he made an unwise decision and responded quizzically to the interrogation questions from the prosecutor. Subsequently, demonstrators outside the trial court argued that “a child is not a man” and shouldn’t be punished like one. Such a case was presented in the trial of Nathaniel Brazill. Although all lives matter and children are known for being compulsive, dangerous citizens of our society, they are juveniles and deserve to be tried as juveniles.
I. Thesis For generations, the argument whether juveniles should be waived to adult courts or not has been a prevalent one in our society. Some agree that waiving the juveniles to adult courts will reduce their recidivism rate, due to the harsh sentences and a lifelong record next to their name. However, in light of the argument these individuals fail to consider that the level of maturity of the juvenile is not the same as an adult. The cognitive development of the juvenile is still in process when they are underage, causing them to act impulsively without thinking about the consequences of their actions.
”(Ryan, 2) What has been brought to attention is, not only does the most government money go into incarceration, but a higher amount is funded in the process of incarcerating young Americans. As much money it cost to take care of young child is typically doubled when you are putting them in prison. A Lot of thought is put into the decision of incarcerated someone under the age of 18, an even bigger arrangement for a minor under 16. The Justice Policy reviews the comparisons of funding towards youth confinement centers versus public education cost “Thirty-three U.S. states and jurisdictions spend $100,000 or more annually to incarcerate a young person, and continue to generate outcomes that result in even greater costs.
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.
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
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.
In 2010 juveniles were rebellious there where many cases where a teen was robbing and getting into fights. a case came up of a 14 year old girl she committed a crime where she got into a serious fight with one of her friends . She is now facing life in prison without parole. It is wrong to hold children as adults when they haven’t reached the age limit to be considered an “adult”. Children are not permitted the same rights and responsibilities an adult has.
There are many children in the world who are being put behind bars and detained for alleged wrongdoing without protections they are entitled to. Throughout the world, children are charged and sentenced for actions that should not be considered as adult crimes. Here in the United States, the minimum age of criminal responsibility is age 12. Law enforcement officials and those in the juvenile justice system nationwide tend to mistreat underage individuals by trying cases while working through the lens of an adult. Unfair punishments are still handed down domestically, which is in violation of Supreme Court law.
Lastly, in some states; there are age of majority statutes which automatically prosecute sixteen and/or seventeen years old depending on the state as adults (Campaign for Youth
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.