Should Teenagers Get Life Without Parole

Should teenagers be sentenced to life without the possibility of parole? Many believe that teens should spend life in prison based on the severity of their crime. Others argue that LWOP does not rehabilitate, but punishes teens. Looking at the documentary, When Kids Get Life, I believe that teens should not receive life without parole due to the fact that a teen’s brain is not yet fully formed, causing teens to struggle with decision-making and have an impulse control. Teens should be given a second chance to change in society. The brain is a large, complex organism in the body. As an individual grows, the neural connections in the brain are also grows. These neural connections control functions such as decision-making, judgement, impulses, and emotions, such as anger, sadness, and happiness. When an individual becomes a teenager, their brain is still growing and making neural connections, therefore their sense of decision-making and impulse control is deficient. This can cause a teen to perform in reckless activities. Jacob Ind’s case is an example of the lack of impulse control a teenager has. When Ind was 15, he killed his mother and stepfather. After the murder, Ind went to school and told one of his friends about the murder. Ind, after his arrest states that “I didn't really grasp the permanency of their deaths, I definitely didn't understand the gravity of what it means to kill somebody. I mean, I didn't think they'd feel pain. I

Since a juvenile’s brain is still forming, many perform reckless acts due to their limited impulse control, decision-making, and judgement. Juveniles who commit crimes and receive life without parole should be able to have a second chance in society because teens make mistakes due to their impulse control and should not be punished for the rest of their lives for one mistake. Juveniles should be rehabilitated for the actions they do instead of