Should Juvenile Courts Be Abolished?

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Issue #8: Should Juvenile Courts Be Abolished? No, I think the juvenile justice system should remain as is, especially here in California. It is a crucial element of our entire criminal justice system. I have taken class CRIM 487, “Juvenile Justice” with Dr. Wally ZeMans and have personally been to two juvenile courts in Los Angeles County. I have attended both dependency and delinquency courts and feel they are relevant to the reintegration of juveniles into out system. The theory and concept of “lock them up and through the keys away” cannot and should not apply to minors. They always deserve a second chance to fix their mistakes. Even though I think we should keep the juvenile justice system, I am not in favor of the way the “NO” argument on the Florida experiment is presented. I do not feel confident in its findings as the most valid or concrete reason for keeping the juvenile court system around. The argument that minors are more at risk of recidivism if taken to adult court is plausible, but only to a certain extent in this article. I feel this article is almost too factual and analytical, with not enough commentary to accent its reported findings. Mr. Schiraldi and Ziedenberg make valid points but they do not seem to grasp the heart and soul of juvenile justice—rehabilitation and integration. Their main argument of concern is that offenders under the age of 18 are more likely to repeat offend or become even more violent if they are tried in adult court at the sole discretion of a state prosecutor. Any criminal justice Einstein could sell those points. There is more to this system in my eyes. The information used throughout this article is concrete and academic, with minimal propaganda. If anything it discredits the Florida juvenile system. The harsh factual evidence of the juvenile system in Florida and among the several states is

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