ipl-logo

Extraordinary Confinement In Just Mercy By Bryan Stevenson

1013 Words5 Pages

In all three mediums, the authors and presenters are all averse to the ideas of minors being tried as adults, death row and solitary confinement. I agree in all three cases. Minors should not be tried as adults because they are not adults. While there should be some level of culpability for their actions, it should never reach the point where they are tried as anything other than a juvenile. Many youth, for no other reason than biological constraints, lack the psychological maturity to make logical and well-reasoned choices. For that reason, they should not be condemned for a crime they committed in their youth, for their entire lives. I do not believe in solitary confinement because in all of the materials I’ve read, all it does is cause mental …show more content…

Throughout the novel he uses imagery and expressive language often to paint as vivid of a picture he can, without the use of visual effects. This causes the reader to be immersed within his memoir and to experience and live through what he felt. He attempts to humanize himself and those around him when media seeks to do the exact opposite. In Just Mercy, Bryan Stevenson uses anecdotes and statistics to show that being tried as an adult is an unjust act. In Chapter 8, Bryan recalls the story of several children tried as adults, but Trina’s story affected me the most. Trina was a sexually abused child who while visiting a friend, lit their house on fire, killing the two boys she intended to visit. She was given life in prison and tried as an adult. Bryan continues with these personal stories of child with mental illnesses and psychological trauma being condemned to life under the system, he does not condone it but asks his audience to …show more content…

Kalief was charged for a petty crime, accused of stealing a backpack. He was given a bail of ten thousand dollars, which he could not afford and was sent to prison. While in prison for three years, he was in solitary confinement for two of them and eventually, his mental health deteriorated beyond repair. He attempted suicide various times and when finally freed, he was successful. His solitary confinement broke this young man, stealing the life of a 22 year old because the criminal justice system “focuses on punishment and not

Show More
Related
153 Words | 1 Pages

On November 19, 1898, Ariel Tritondatter was arrested on the felony charges of first- degree murder and breaking & entering. An arraignment was later held on November 22, 1898, which Ariel Tritondatter was informed about the charges she was faced with. Additionally, Ariel Tritondatter soon entered a plea of not guilty by reason of insanity Ariel Tritondatter’s criminal trial was set in the Circuit Court with both a jury and a judge called “Syed Ahmed Khan”. The defendant, Ariel Tritondatter, almost didn’t converse throughout the trial, but soon she took a stand to defend herself.

Read More
843 Words | 4 Pages

Currently, the United States holds 5% of the world’s population, but 25% of the world’s prisoners (eji.org), which comes out to around 2.3 million inmates. 10,000 of these prisoners are children housed in adult facilities. 20,000 of these prisoners are wrongly convicted of crimes they did not commit (huff post). 356,000 are seriously mentally ill (treatment advocacy). One million of these convicts are African Americans (NAACP).

Read More
561 Words | 3 Pages

Markus Zusak uses literary device to help understand and get the true meaning of the book. In the novel, the author helps and shows you flashbacks give you hints and information about the person or event. Telling backstory for various characters, and flashes forward in the book. He shows this when “Flash Forward to the basement, September 1943.”

Read More
164 Words | 1 Pages

Bryan Stevenson generated an inspiring and serious voice in his memoir Just Mercy. The novel by Stevenson is something that weighs on the reader’s heart due to the naked truth revealed in almost every case presented to the audience. The tragic and real events throughout the book are heavy and difficult to grasp, especially when all of the events happened recently. Every chapter exploits the raw corruption of the justice systems, as well as the proof that there are good and just people in the world. Stevenson tells half of the story from his perspective, and the other half as a third party narrator.

Read More
329 Words | 2 Pages

— Last night our nation saw the pains and struggles that Ms. Venida Browder lived with for so many years. Ms. Browder, the mother of Kalief Browder, shared her son with us one last time, as the nation watched “The Kalief Browder Story”. Kalief Browder was arrested in 2010, at the age of 16, as he was headed home in the Bronx. Mr. Browder would be, accused of, and charged with robbery –and given a bail of $3,000.

Read More
899 Words | 4 Pages

At the age of 16 years old Alonza Thomas, a typical teenage boy, was given a 13 year sentence for second degree armed robbery. It all started when he ran away from home; his mother was upset with him so he left to avoid dealing with the problem. He met someone while trying to find a place to stay and he offered him a place to sleep and some hot food. When Alonza had finally decided it was time for him to go home and face his mother, they demanded that he repay them somehow. They held him at gun point, making it apparent that they weren’t going to back down if he went against what they wanted.

Read More
939 Words | 4 Pages

Many people went to jail for the pettiest things such as not paying their debt, yet were treated the same as a murder. Another major cause was the mentally ill who had done crimes, but were forced to live cruel living conditions in jail. In Dix’s life she went through

Read More
779 Words | 4 Pages

“There is a strength, a power even, in understanding brokenness, because embracing our brokenness creates a need and desire for mercy, and perhaps a corresponding need to show mercy (Stevenson 109) .” This bold statement is one of many as Bryan Stevenson sets the tone for his renowned award winning novel Just Mercy. As a young lawyer from Georgia, built the foundation for his company, SPDC (Southern Prisoners Defense Committee) to help convicts that are on death row or in need a second chance. Bryan Stevenson, a young lawyer from Georgia who fought for justice on the behalf of inmates on death row, showed tremendous intelligence in becoming a successful lawyer, demanding for not backing down in moments of refusal, and was an overall advocate

Read More
160 Words | 1 Pages

In the Supreme Court case Roper v. Simmons, I believe the way this case ended helped the youth of our country. It seems to me the execution of juveniles is completely cruel and as well violates the 8th and 14th amendments of the constitution. As well, I feel as if the brain and maturity of a minor is nowhere close to being developed fully, most researchers say the brain doesn’t fully develop until you're about the age of 25. I also believe that the execution of juveniles is completely inhumane due to not allowing the person to experience the maturity of being an adult and taking responsibility for your actions. Overall, juveniles are not ready to be brought into the big world yet, and there is nothing small about the punishment of execution.

Read More
985 Words | 4 Pages

Consequently, he saw the prisoners as more than just their convictions. So much so that as his relationship developed with Walter over time, he became like a brother to Bryan (Just Mercy, 13). The majority were not as fortunate as Walter, since prisoners all were driven to to feel as if they no longer belonged on this earth which is the worst injury of all (Citizen, 146). Walter’s case proved to Bryan that fear and anger are truly a threat to justice, they can infect a community, a state, or nation and make us blind, irrational, and dangerous to those around us (Just Mercy,

Read More
761 Words | 4 Pages

Remember that special bird that always seems to be belting its cheerful tunes? Has anyone ever told you to appreciate the bird’s special knack for singing? Or rather, to do no harm to the frail animal since, after all, “It's a sin to kill a mockingbird” (Lee, pg.119). Harper Lee took this aphorism and turned it on its head: she gave this phrase a new meaning by creating the critically acclaimed novel, To Kill A Mockingbird starring the brother sister duo, Scout and Jem, both of whom constantly finding themselves in the most unlikely but simultaneously relatable predicaments. The audience follows the pair through their highs and lows in a key coming of age story.

Read More
541 Words | 3 Pages

No one can defeat Death There once was a young woman, who strived to be immortal, this caused her to bind herself away from the world for years. She decided one day that she had conquered death by changing her fate and goes to venture the town where she met a strange man, who insults her, filled with anger she decides to go after him where she faces death. A very similar situation is portrayed in “The Masque of the Red Death” with the character Prince Prospero, who believes that he has changed his fate by locking himself in his palace for years but this doesn’t end well for him as he faces death in his own home. In “The Masque of the Red Death”, written by Edgar Allen Poe, irony and symbolism to is used prove that death is inevitable.

Read More
582 Words | 3 Pages

In 2012, the Supreme Court ruled that it is immoral to give juveniles life sentences, even if they commit a crime as serious as murder, because it is a cruel and unusual punishment. This has been an issue in America as teenagers are often treated as adults in court due to a belief that their crimes warrant a harsh punishment. Many believe that these kids should not be given such major sentences because they are still immature and do not have the self control that adults do. I agree that juveniles do not deserve life sentences because they put less thought and planning into these crimes and they often are less malicious than adults. The article “Startling Finds on Teenage Brains” explains that the teenagers lose brain tissue that is responsible for self control and impulses (Thompson 7).

Read More
260 Words | 2 Pages

One of the alternatives is that it gives the juvenile a second chance to redeem themselves if they 're not tried as adults for their crimes. Instead of spending the rest of the child’s life in jail they can go into rehab and hopefully continue on to a better path. Life in jail as a minor is considered a cruel and unusual punishment because they are at higher risks of rape and sexual assault. Philip Holloway from CNN was taught that minors are more salvageable than adults. I slightly agree with that statement because children barely started living their lives and their brain is not fully developed unlike an adult where their brain is.

Read More
760 Words | 4 Pages

Can you imagine waking up behind closed walls and bars? Waking up to see your inmate who is a 45-year-old bank robber and you are a 14-year-old minor who made a big mistake. This is why minors who have committed crimes should not be treated the same as adults. Some reasons are because the consequences given to minors in adult court would impact a minor’s life in a negative way. If a minor is tried through a juvenile court, they have a greater chance of rehabilitation.

Read More

More about Extraordinary Confinement In Just Mercy By Bryan Stevenson

Related Topics

Open Document