This source shows that the brain does not fully develop until the mid twenties, causing irrational decisions. It also shows how peer pressure plays a big part in teenagers decisions. It also states that teens tend to commit crimes in groups. It also states that if someone can’t make rational decisions, they should not be held to the law as a regular
Juveniles are aware of their actions, unless they have a psychological disorder even if that includes life in prison without parole, or if the juvenile has a brutal childhood. The general argument made by Paul Thompson in his work, Startling Finds on Teenage Brains, is that as teens grow, they are developing mentally as well. More specifically, Thompson argues that teens act a certain way because of changes in their brain. He claims, “With repeated brain scans of kids from three to twenty, we pieced together “movies” showing how brains grow and change”(Thompson). Thompson states that studies have shown that the brain has changes when being three to twenty years of age.
After reading the article and the assigned reading, I think that brain development should be put in consideration when assessing juveniles that have broken the law. Since the brain is not fully developed
At just 14, Young’s brain was certainly not fully developed. Teen brains lack proper decision making skills. The brain is far more irrational, reckless, emotional, and easily influenced than the adult brain. The article “Beautiful Brains”, further expands on this topic, going into depth about what it is exactly that causes juveniles to act this way. The article explains, “The brain undergoes extensive remodeling, resembling a network and a wiring upgrade.”
This type of rehabilitation may involve sending the juvenile to boot camp, after-school programs and incarceration. Besides locking up and disciplining the juvenile, rehabilitation also involves skill-building. Having juvenile rehabilitation to correct their tendencies is beneficial to the community since they won’t become a threat. For those who are deemed not dangerous should be rehabilitated instead of incapacitated. Instead of being placed in an adult facility, juveniles in detention centers have a better opportunity of getting rehabilitation to prevent future criminal acts.
I think this is why so many juveniles do the crime because there are going through the loss of their tissue. In the article by Paul Thompson called “ starting finds on teenage brains” says in quote that they have done test on many different teens and the results are so shocking that in the area that controls the impulses are very risk taking and self control. And the frontal lobes of the brain that also inhibit the violent passions that put the plug on why these juveniles do the crime. The result to this is that they are founded a different way to reshape the brain during the lost of brain tissue so that they can be normal like if they had never lost any
An adolescent is not allowed to drink, smoke, get married, or sign legal contracts because they aren’t capable of making mature decisions. In many poor communities, the only things adolescents see are crimes. Teenagers are like a sponge they absorb everything they see. Throughout many years, kids have committed crimes that have gotten them unreasonable sentences. From looking at many sources I found that teenagers don’t think of the consequences their actions might have on them.
One of the most controversial debates in today’s society is whether or not the court systems should try juveniles as adults. How is trying an adolescent as an adult ethical? Although everyone should be held responsible for their actions, it is scientifically proven the brain continues to mature until at least the age of twenty five. Juveniles should not be tried as adults when they are physically incapable of thinking like one, all juveniles deserve a second chance to better their lives through rehabilitation or counseling which is what the juvenile court systems focus more on and sending juveniles to adult prisons is not only dangerous, but it exposes juveniles to more violent criminals in prison.
“This theory postulates that the gap between social/emotional maturity, and greater affiliation with other delinquent peers via social mimicry” (Cruise et al., 2008). This theory also focuses on the neurodevelopmental characteristics and progression within the lives of adolescent’s. As mentioned before, Cruise, Fernandez, McCoy, Guy, Colwell, and Douglas, quote Cauffman and Steinberg stating, “‘this growing body of research has brought up both the developmental theoretical framework, and operationalization of that framework, to examine adolescents’ specific developmental capacities deemed crucial to participation in the legal processes’ (Cauffman & Steinberg, 1995),” (Cruise et al., 2008). Meaning that there must be an understanding during the juvenile interrogation and the juvenile justice system, that adolescent’s are cognitively different than adults. The combination of cognitive, social, and emotional factors influence the “maturity of judgment” through age-related factors that differentiate an adolescent’s decision-making from that of an
The Juveniles are kids not adults and that they don’t have the same brain development as adults do. In the article, “Starting finds on Teenage Brains” by Paul Thompson saying that during this time of period in teenagers be having massive loss of brain tissue. It is believed that the massive brain loss tissue supports all teens thinking and emotions. It also says, “Brain cells and connections are only being lost in areas controlling impulses, risk taking and self control.”
When teen felons choose to act without thinking, they are putting other people’s lives at risk. They need to be charged as adults because the victims of the crimes will not be given the justice they deserve when they have to worry about that criminal harming them again. Although some people think that sending a juvenile through adult court gives them no hope, they should have given this a little thought before committing the crime. Teens need to think about the consequences and how their actions affect others before they act. When choosing between putting a violent adolescent in prison and taking the chance of letting them commit that crime again, it is most suitable to let the teen be tried as an adult and to place them in prison.
If an “undeveloped brain” was the case then teens would kill at roughly the same rates all over the world, which is not. Some of these teens think they can get away with some of these crimes which leads to commit more. In Jennifer's article she explains one of her case with a serial killer. His parents will fix everything whenever he got in trouble. After series of other
In Juveniles Don’t Deserve Life Sentences Garinger says “Brain imaging studies reveal that the regions of the Adolescent brain responsible for controlling thoughts, actions,and emotions aren't fully developed.” This proves that even though them committing crimes is wrong it needs to be taken in consideration that they are still developing basic concepts. Not all teens commit violent crimes with this instability in the brain, but everyone is different and has different upbringings, surroundings, and influences while growing up. Your environment and the people you surround yourself with influences the decisions you make in your life some good and others bad. In Juveniles Don't Deserve Life Sentences it also mentions that the supreme court realized “ juvenile offenders cannot with reliability be classified amongst the worst offenders”.
It is debated that juveniles are committing more serious and violent crimes because the youth think they can get off easy and take advantage of the system put in place. Those in favor of youth offenders being tried as adults believe that as juveniles are punished to the full extent of the law, future youth offender will think twice before committing a criminal act. In support of this, seventy-five percent of the transferred juveniles interviewed by Redding and Fuller (2004) felt that their experiences in the adult criminal justice system had taught them the serious consequences of committing crimes. As one juvenile explained, “[Being tried as an adult] showed me it’s not a game anymore. Before, I thought that since I’m a juvenile I could do just about anything and just get 6 months if I got
But this actually disproves juvenile advocates reliance on the “underdeveloped brain” argument. If brain development were the reason, then teens would kill at roughly the same rates all over the world(Jenkins 91). This is something that doesn’t happens, you won’t be seeing teens around the world murdering people. Brain development is just something people don’t understand how it really works and use this argument to try to lower criminals culpability.
