Touching Spirit Bear by Ben Mikaelsen is a novel in which the main character , Cole Matthews, finds himself struggling with his own downfall. He also finds himself fighting his own spirit. Cole is banished from Drake, Alaska because he has committed a crime. His classmate Peter Driscal had told on him for breaking into the school. Now, if someone told on Cole Matthews, they were going to have to pay the price. Many other teenagers have committed crimes. The most common are: theft/larceny, vandalism, alcohol offenses, etc. Depending on the severity of the crime committed by these youngsters they could be tried as an adult. If they are tried as an adult there has been cases where kids 16, and at the youngest recorded 14, years of age