...When people think of juveniles they think rude, selfish, and growing up too fast. Now, think of what they say when a juvenile kills an innocent person, let alone if it was their own parent, another teen, or just a random person in the street. They would say that juvenile was raised wrong, heartless, and think they are better than anybody else. What if that teen didn’t know what she or he was doing at the moment of the crime? What if that teen was going through something unbreakable at the time and doesn’t know how to control their emotions or mind. More than 25 percent of people severing life without parole who were convicted of felony murder or accomplice liability as children. In America, there are 10,000 children that are held in adult prisons on any given...
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...average of 7,500 youth are incarcerated in adult jails. This subject is given little attention by the public, despite the horrific consequences of being tried in an adult criminal justice system and incarceration in an adult jail. Youth who are placed in adult jails are at a greater risk of physical and sexual assault. I believe juveniles under the age of 18 should not be treated as adult criminals because placing youth in the adult criminal justice system puts their safety at risk, restricts their necessary education and crucial health development, and increases the likelihood of violence and re-offending. Placing youth in adult jails most likely result in inimical situations and it is extremely difficult to prevent these events from occurring. By housing young offenders in the same facilities as adult criminals they are presented as the easiest preys which result in physical and sexual assaults. For example, according to the U.S. Department of Justice Bureau of Justice Statistics, in 2005 and 2006,...
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...Should juveniles who commit first or second- degree murder receive a mandatory sentence of life without parole? That is a question that many people are asking themselves. This is a very debatable question due to the fact that if a juvenile does change, then he/she wouldn't have a chance at a new life because of the life sentence. I believe they should be granted a second chance, but if they take that second chance for granted, then they should be sentenced to life without parole. On the other hand, there has been cases where a teen who was sentenced to life got a second chance, but decided to take it for granted for being immature and emotionally unstable. Many teens make reckless decisions while growing up, some don't know better but others do. Where I stand in this situation is that juveniles should not be sentenced to mandatory life sentences without parole. Not many...
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...Juveniles should not be imprisoned for life without the possibility of parole! In the Frontline documentary “When Kids Get Life” we are introduced to 5 cases in Colorado where teenage boys had been sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. Over 2,200 juveniles have been convicted of crimes and sentenced to life without parole in the 46 states of which have judicial waiver laws. Nathan Ybanez, Trevor Jones, Jacob Ind, Erik Jensen and Andrew Medina are the teenagers profiled in the documentary. The documentary shows five cases that dealt with felony murder. “The rule of felony murder is legal doctrine in some common law jurisdictions that broadens the crime of murder in two ways. First, when an offender kills accidentally...
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...being tried as juveniles but are being tried as adults and are getting life in prison. Kids as young as the age of 13 are being given life in prison with no opportunity at a second chance. The court systems are failing to recognize that these juveniles have their whole lives ahead of them.. Juveniles in the United States deserve second chances; they are not old enough or fully developed to know any better. Juveniles in the United States who are sentenced to life in prison still deserve a second chance at life, even if they commit a serious crime. Children in the United States, especially younger kids, are easily influenced by media and what type of home environment they live in because of their age. Kids tend to copy what they see, that means if they see something they should not be doing around them or on media, there is a chance that they will replicate it. The way children learn and behave is drastically different from the way adults do, which is why they should not be tried as adults and get sentenced to life. Children have the potential to change more than adults do. While kids are young they view the world differently. As Garinger mentioned adolescents are “less...
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...people sentenced to life in prison as juveniles and found the defendants in other cases were not uncommon. Seventy-nine percent witnessed violence in their homes regularly, 32% grew up in public housing, and 40% had been enrolled in special education classes. Fewer than half of the prisoners were attending school at the time of their offense, 47% were physically abused, and 77% of girls reported histories of sexual abuse (“Juvenile Life Without Parole”). Is a child who has been through so much mental trauma at such an age of there life deserve to be put in prison for life? “In the U.S. each year, children as young as 13 are sentenced to spend the rest of their lives in prison...
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...order and preserving constitutional rights. When a juvenile is arrested and charged with committing a crime there are many different factors that will come in to play during the course of his arrest, trial, conviction, sentencing, and rehabilitation process. This paper examines on why juveniles should be sentenced to life when they commit heinous crimes. The Supreme Court has ruled that they cannot sentence a juvenile to life in prison due to the fact that it violates the 8 Amendment’s ban on cruel and unusual punishment. But let’s take Lionel Tate as an example; at the age of twelve savagely beat to death a six-year-old girl, would the court release this ‘kid’ to society knowing what his background is? When he was put on trial at the age of fourteen and convicted as an adult of first-degree murder, he was supposedly imitating a world wrestling federation wrestler, which ended up killing his playmate. There is no reason for doing this is common sense and I do not agree on scientist saying that a teenager’s brain is not full developed; it is just a stupid conclusion. If that were to be the case at this point there would be a mass of teenagers in maximum security jails and sentenced to life in there. There have been kids that have attended college at the age of 14, so is there brain not fully developed? I do not think so. Another example can be the case of Nathaniel Brazil, when Nathaniel shot to death an English teacher who would not let him say good-bye to two girls. Does this...
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...Should Youths be treated as Adults in the Canadian Justice System? Varun Thapar Due Date: March 1, 2011 Mr. Roberts The Youth Justice System was originally created in 1908; and was brought about because the government considered facilitating the youth so they wouldn’t be given the same sentence as adults. This early incarnation of youth legislation was called the Juvenile Delinquents Act This act was for young offenders with a guiding philosophy that juveniles are not criminals but children who need direction. An offender was classified to be between the ages of 7-18 could be tried in this system. The accused does not have a right to a lawyer, hearings were closed; and the charter did not apply. Examples of sentencing options were light and included fines and placements in foster care home. In 1984, the Young Offenders Act was changed to the idea that youths are less responsible for crimes than adults. Some of the amendments of this new act were a narrower range of age, 12-17 year olds and the accused must be advised of right to a lawyer, the Charter rights apply, and the accused could be sentenced to open or closed custody, and could be sentenced to 5 years for murder. In 2002, harsher punishments were introduced to the Act along with a change of name to the, Youth Criminal Justice Act. The driving idea for this act is that tougher sentences prevent crimes but rehabilitation is vital. It has been is debated as to whether or not youth should be given the same sentences...
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...xxxxxx 05/20/2010 COM/220 Karen Moninger The life of a seven-year old girl tragically ends at the hands of a young boy. The court convicted Lionel Tate of first degree murder for beating the 48-pound girl, and sentenced him to life in prison. This punishment was a rather harsh judgment many in the community argue against today. Instead of incarcerating him for life, what other options are available? As teen violence continues to plague the nation, many people wonder if rehabilitation is an effective method for deterring future occurrences. Twelve-year old Lionel Tate took the life of a young girl named Tiffany Eunick. Lionel’s mother, a Florida Highway Patrol officer, was sleeping upstairs though she was responsible for babysitting Tiffany. The mother left the children watching television and playing together downstairs unattended. During horse play, Lionel begins to re-enact moves he saw watching wrestling. The 160-pound boy was responsible for cuts, bruises, fractured skull, lacerated liver, broken ribs and internal hemorrhaging on young Tiffany Eunick. Certainly the parents of the deceased child will want to see justice served for the loss of their loved one. Stories surface daily about a teen committing some sort of crime. A heart wrenching reality that many people will either themselves face, or know someone who has or will experience. The epidemic of teen violence is rapidly increasing; Statistics say youth under the age of 18 were arrested for nearly...
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...in the United States. More juveniles crimes, are sentenced to juvenile court, and then sent right back to where they started The question is, are these juveniles being treated right, are they getting the proper attention? Should they be treated like adults? Or should teenagers, no matter what the crime may be, be treated as juveniles? Many social and cultural factors in a child's life may influence a child’s behaviors. In fact, according to Dr. Noguera, Most violent teens are from lower class urban areas. Many of them are minorities and a lot come from dysfunctional families. Why then, do people say there is no way to prevent a juvenile from turning violent? When a child is aggressive with at school, or siblings at home, or even when or if they kill animals, they are calling out for attention. These are signs that lead to violence. Has society just given up on teen's altogether once they commit a crime? Obviously there is a pattern, and prevention is key. California and other states respond to the increase of violence and juvenile offenders by building new facilities. Instead, of doing this they spend that money on prevention methods such as providing schools with more counselors? They could provide more after school programs to help keep the kids off the streets. If a child needs help with a problem they should be able to talk to a counselor. I'm not talking about two or three days after he is arrested, instead there should be an adult available to talk to right when the first...
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...At 15 years old you are not able to drink, drive, vote, or even see an R-rated movie by yourself because you are not classified as an adult. If this is the case, why are juveniles tried as adults when they commit a crime? Every year there is an estimated 250,000 youth tried in the United States as an adult. Although no crime should go unpunished, there are many contributing factors that states why a minor shouldn’t be sentenced as an adult. The fact that most adolescents become repeat offenders, they are not able to survive in prison, and the court is basically ruining their lives are just a few examples of why they shouldn’t be tried as an adult. To begin with, 66 percent of the youth in the United States that are sentencved to prison become...
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...book is the life without parole sentence for juveniles. Stevenson spends time talking about a few cases that had important impacts on himself and his fight against unfair sentencings. He also briefly talks about his court case in front of the US Supreme Court. I believe learning the history behind life without parole sentencing for juveniles will allow me to see what Bryan Stevenson was up against, when he argued his case in front of the US Supreme Court. The book had many different aspects about the justice system that interested me. However, it...
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...today’s society, which is causing kids to have to go to more extremes to be deviant and thus resulting in more severe reactions to this behavior. The cause of juvenile violence is frequently related to one of two things; the child was exposed to violence when they were young or they are trying to fit into a deviant crowd. In 2008 approximately 10% of the children under 18 had been injured in an assault, 46% had been assaulted and 60% had been exposed to violence and/or crime. (Crime Solutions) Children who have been exposed to violence when they were young are more likely to commit crime when they are older. Children who were younger than 12 when they were exposed to the violence or crime are the most likely to commit crimes later in life. (United States Department of Justice) Children who face violence at home are also more likely to become a runaway, which makes it much easier to run into the wrong crowd. There is an increasing amount of children in abusive homes who end up trying to become vigilantes towards the abuser in order to make the abuse stop. A majority of female offenders had been either physically or sexually abused during their childhood. The second main cause of childhood crimes is the group in which the kid is trying to fit into. Kids in rougher neighborhoods may join gangs for protection and thus are exposed to crime and required to prove that they are worthy of the gang’s help. In 2011 an estimated 48% of violent...
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...Intro to Criminal Justice 02/07/2013 I believe treating juveniles as adults is a good law to ensure that they can go to jail and receive time for a crime they committed. I think no matter what age a person is they should learn a lesson by doing their punishment or do hour services for the community. If a child that can pick up a dangerous weapon and harm an innocent person they knows what is right or wrong. They know that they can get in trouble for it. They should expect the consequences are going to be giving to them. My offer, point of view to prevent things like this is that children and adults should take delinquency programs. They can get counseling, get other services where they can get help to get their life straighten out, and prevent them from getting in trouble in the future. During the 1990s, nearly every state passed more punitive justice laws making it easier to try juveniles in adult court. More and more teens are doing time alongside adults in prison. This represents society’s recent shift towards taking a harsher view of adolescent’s culpability. When a juvenile is charge with certain felony offenses, his or her case may be transferred to the adult criminal division where a juvenile will be prosecuted in the same way as adults charge with laws violations. When a child is found guilty or pleads guilty in adult court and is sentenced as an adult, that child is forever considered an adult for the future violations of state law. In some cases, minors can be...
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...Murder has always been a part of life. Although normally when we hear about it , the murderer is an Adult. However for some it becomes a taboo subject to accept that there are Juveniles who commit heinous murder as well. It becomes even more challenging when deciding what consequences the Juvenile will face. It is crucial to understand that there can be many factors that play into a role which might influence the murder the Juvenile has committed. In other words, Juveniles should not be treated as adults and thus possibly given a life sentence . Many elements of the juvenile should be taken into context. Not necessarily age, or gender, but deeper aspects that will determine their consequence . Aside from taking those deeper aspects into...
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