27, 2002) In 2010 Connecticut raised the age to 17. This change could be due to the change in the “adult time for adult crime” way of thinking, as more people are seeing that a child under the age of 16 is a child and they need to be treated as such. Trying children as adults, say rehabilitation supporters, comes from a desire for revenge-not a desire to find a suitable punishment. However horrible the crimes, they argue, neither society nor the children are well
3.) What does projecting our youths population do for our justice system? In the year 1995 is when people began too project the next centuries juvenile crime rates. James Wilson figured that the nation at the end of the decade in the 1990's that there would be roughly one million more teenagers in the delinquent ages of fourteen to seventeen than there was in 1995. This raised his eyebrows and he started too put together numbers to figure up the effect of what this many more teenagers would have on the society.
One of the most controversial issues society faces today is the death penalty, especially when involving juveniles. People see it as cruel and unusual especially for juveniles because their so young and immature and they don’t have the mental culpability to understand the outcome of their actions. The juvenile justice system main goal is rehabilitation, not punishment. Two major cases that impacted the Juvenile Justice system, regarding juveniles and execution are Stanford v Kentucky and Roper v Simmons. Stanford v Kentucky was a United States Supreme court case that dealt with the imposition of the death penalty on offenders who were at least sixteen years old at the time the crime was committed.
March of progress sociologists say that childhood has changed dramatically because children have become more valued, protected and educated. Due to the introduction of various laws, children have become more protected, cared for and treated differently to adults. However the conflict view argues that childhood has not improved because massive inequalities still exist e.g. children suffer under the control and oppression of adults which can often take extreme forms of physical, sexual or emotional abuse. In medieval times, childhood was very different to what it is today.
President Mark Soler of the Washington, D.C., Youth Law Center points out that adolescents/children are required by law to be incarcerated separately from adults. However, the overwhelmed juvenile justice system lets the adult criminal justice system handle many youth offenders. This causes numerous negative effects for convicted juveniles. The law recognizes that adolescents/children are less equipped to make important decisions than adults are. Yet the law fails to distinguish between adolescents/children and adults when it comes to spending the rest of their lives in prison for crimes they have committed before their 18th birthday.
Although President Clinton passed bills to push for harsher punishment for juveniles before it could go into effect, the juvenile crime rates dropped. After the rise of juvenile crimes in 1993, the juvenile crime rate dropped and has been on a decline ever since. The Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) received a new lease on life. One key initiative of the OJJDP was known as Balanced and Restorative Justice. This initiative placed major value in involving the victim in the rehabilitative process (Krisberg, 2008).
Should Juveniles Be Tried As Adults? The article “Should Juveniles Be Tried As Adults” by Terry A. Maroney describes the relation of teens and the criminal system. She believes that teens are not adults and that they do not have the mentality or righteousness as an adult. Saying a child or teen is an adult does not make them one. She continues on to say that it is proven that teens are more likely to be influenced by peer pressure.
Legal Essay The Criminal Justice System has had varying degrees of effectiveness on all matters of Society, one extensive factor being young offenders. Whilst the Criminal Justice System may seem to be easy going on Juveniles, there are certain laws regarding age of responsibility, as at some ages it understandable that they may not be able to comprehend the seriousness of their actions. This can result in them going to court, and as some of these children will be young there are certain courts available to be sent to, such as the Children’s Court, there are also alternatives to attending court. Young Offenders have certain rights as to when they are questioned or arrested, this is covered in the Young Offenders Act 1997 (NSW), also the penalties that the Criminal Justice System may impose on summary or indictable crimes performed will be explored. Assessing the effectiveness of the criminal justice system when dealing with young offenders in relation to the source SMH.
Should juveniles who have been physically, mentally, and sexually abused be handed adult sentences for retaliating? We need to look at exactly what influences children to commit heinous crimes. Mentally ill patients should be cared for as mentally ill patients, not criminal offenders. The mentally ill need an alternative to the prison system. Justice has evolved a great deal, especially when the death penalty is involved.
Should Children Under The Age of 18 Be Tried As Adults? Today you hear more and more about children, under the age of 18, who has committed murder. Whether it was on purpose or by accident, these stories are beginning to fill up the headlines. A big question is how are these children punished for the crimes that they commit? Children are not considered to be adults, so should they be tried as adults?