Persuasive Essay On Monster By Walter Dean Myers

813 Words4 Pages

Everyone makes mistakes. Whether it’s accidental, like taking an item without paying at the store, or purposeful, like robbing someone at gunpoint. Subsequently, every action comes with a consequence. However, these consequences can be too extreme or unfair. These unfortunate occurrences are happening in our juvenile justice system. Many of them are being tried as adults and receiving verdicts that are not meant for teens. Take 16-year-old Steve Harmon from the book "Monster" by Walter Dean Myers. He was involved in a robbery as a lookout and was arrested and tried for the first-degree murder of Mr. Nesbit in an adult court. Is that fair? I don’t think so. This is one of the many examples of kids who have been tried in an unfair situation. …show more content…

These places usually contain the craziest and best criminals in the country. This is certainly no place for teenagers, no matter how bad the crime they committed. Take Sal Zinzi, an adult witness from "Monster," who was on the stand to testify against James King, so, in return, he could leave the treacherous conditions. In the story on page 196, the prosecutor repeats his testimony, "So to save yourself from being gang-raped, is that what they wanted to do to you?" If Sal Zinzi, who was afraid of sexual abuse and was an adult, had to face what teens would have to face if we sent them to …show more content…

In 2012, in Alabama v. Miller, 14-year-old Evan Miller beat up his neighbor and set fire to his trailer. In another case, Roper v. Simmons, Christopher Simmons tied a woman, threw her off a bridge, and watched her drown. So what happened? According to the article "Juveniles, No Parole," the Supreme Court ruled in Miller v. Alabama that it was unconstitutional and a violation of the 8th Amendment to sentence a juvenile to prison, saying that in the second case, the Court banned the death penalty for people 18 and under. In that same story, Justice Elena said it "diminished culpability and heightened the capacity for change." If the highest court of the United States agreed some punishments were harsh, who could