There has been many a time in my life, as I’m sure there has been in everyone else’s, that being given the second chance has made the difference. But I do believe, however trite this may sound, that if you do an adult crime, you do adult time. Minors that commit certain serious crimes should be tried as adults. Some youths are even known to commit crimes without thought because they know they cannot be tried as adults. Violent, preventable crimes by minors have long plagued America’s larger cities but have scarcely been punished because of the age of the perpetrators.
Fox v. Cochran No. 5102 Bud Fox, a fifteen year old has found his way into the courtroom once again. At a young age he was in and out of the juvenile detention centers never being able to stay out of trouble accumulating multiple charges. While legally still being a minor, the criminal history of Bud Fox’s arrests plays a huge factor in his most recent arrest. Bud Fox is tried as an adult and sentenced to 61.5 years consecutively in prison including 15 from when he was charged as a juvenile for nonviolent crimes.
In recent years, the average age for first arrest has dropped significantly, and younger boys and girls are committing these crimes. Between 60-80% of adolescents, and pre-adolescents engage in some form of juvenile offending [2].These can range from status offenses (such as underage smoking), to property crimes, to violent crimes. The percent of teens who offend is so high that it would seem to be a cause for worry. However, juvenile offending can be considered normative adolescent behaviour [3]. This is because most teens tend to offend by committing non-violent crimes, only once or a few times, and only during adolescence.
I witnessed and endured a lot of things that most non-native children probably had not been through. I saw the persons go to prison, and the peoples die from complications due to alcoholism. The children in grade school now drink, do drug, and go to jail. Some people have dropped out of school. The shock of seeing the people who should have a good future being sucked in to the vicious cycle of reservation life is close to unbearable, but it is the norm in this area.
Wheeler, Joey Proposition/Support Period: 2 December 5, 2012 Juvenile Justice Essay The vexing question of whether an adult trial and sentence are deemed just for juvenile criminals plague the judicial system as more adolescents commit violent crimes in today’s society. As punishment, most juvenile offenders who are found guilty of certain misdemeanors are sent to juvenile detention facilities for a relatively short period or, in some cases, at least until they are 18 years of age, at which time they are transferred to an adult prison. However, there are an unfortunate few who are tried and directly punished as adults; they are either sentenced to death row or incarcerated in a state prison infested with hardcore adult criminals and felons for as long as a lifetime. All youths, despite the crimes they committed, should not be tried and sentenced as adults. Many juvenile offenders are not intellectually or
The demographic group most affected by the war on drugs and the incarceration boom are the juveniles. Youth who turn to drugs and alcohol abuse are faced with harsh reality at YSI Facilities, another branch of the private prison industry. Rather than being charged with fines appropriate to their offenses and being sent to rehabilitation or other forms of drug treatment, non-violent offenders are locked away with long, harsh sentences. This profit-driven war on drugs and other substance abuse ruins the lives of the inmates, turning them into harder criminals by exposing them to such environments. According to a project run by The Huffington Post, 40% of juvenile offenders sent to private prisons on account of drug related crimes are arrested and convicted of harsher crimes in less than a year from their release (Kirkham).
There are certain facts and examples that make us understand the main point that kids cannot be tried as adults. Many juveniles are addressed in court for different crimes, petty crimes like stealing a purse or injuring another human to first degree murder and are tried as adults by the jury. Obviously, they cannot defend themselves well. For instance, kids cannot actively defend themselves when faced with the charges. “They are emotionally or intellectually unable to contribute to their
Juveniles tried as adults In today's world crime has become a major factor in our society. Everywhere we look especially when we watch the news there’s always some type of crime going on. Some people here in the United States believe that no crime should go unpunished. There is a serious controversy with the United States courtroom if a juvenile which means they are younger than 18 years old should be tried as adults for committing crimes. Juveniles need to be tried as adults for committing heinous crimes such as vandalism, arson, burglary or robbery, rape, aggravated assault, attempted murder, and murder.
One in every 100 adults in the United States is incarcerated according to the PCS. The Pew Center on the States (PCS) conducts credible research and analyzes states’ experiences to determine what works and what does not work. Overcrowding has been a problem in the United States for many years. The government has tried different ways to fix it, but it has steadily gotten worse. Overcrowding has become a major issue in the United States mainly because nonviolent drug addicted offenders are repeating behaviors and ending up in jail.
The increase in violent crime by youth is an alarming trend that has many contributing factors. An environment where violence is fed to our youth daily from all avenues including, home, school, and the media can only reinforce the concept of violence as the answer to our problems. Who has the answer for such dramatic damage in our society? Experts who have studied youthful offenders state that most of them grew up in broken and abusive families marked by drugs and alcohol, violence and mental illness. Abuse at such an early age can lead to aggression and violence (The New York Times, 2000).