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Solutions to juvenile crime
Juvenile delinquency around the world
Juvenile delinquency around the world
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The exact definition of a juvenile is a “young person” who has yet to reach their 18th birthday. The average life expectancy of someone living in the U.S. is about 79 years old. Proposition 21 requires juveniles to be viewed and tried as adults, including receiving adult punishment such as a life sentence. If a juvenile receives a life sentence before they reach adulthood, more than three-fourths of their life is gone (“California Proposition 21”). Juveniles don’t even have a fully developed brain and as a result, can’t fully understand the circumstances that they find themselves in.
Crimes are happening around us whether we pay attention to them or not. Those crimes as dangerous as murder are committed by all ages but should younger criminal in their juvenile age received the same punishment as older criminals. On June 25, 2012, the Supreme Court ruled that juveniles committed murder could not be sentenced to life in prison because it violates the Eighth Amendment.(On-Demand Writing Assignment Juvenile Justice) Advocates on the concurring side believes that mandatory life in prison is wrong and should be abolish. However, the dissenting side believe that keeping the there should be a life in prison punishment for juvenile who commit heinous crime regardless of their age.
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.
The opposition’s may think that they should be convicted as an adult because crimes are horrible things and they should be convicted as an adult rather they are an adult or not. Juveniles are often prompted by adults or even other peers to do things that they know are wrong. Teen drug rehabs states, “juveniles are more vulnerable or susceptible to negative influences and outside pressures, including peer pressure,” (Ritter). Furthermore, committing the crime isn’t entirely their fault. Also the juvenile brain isn’t as developed as an that of an adult’s which makes them more likely to act impulsively when giving hard decisions.
California Proposition 21- Victim Rights and Justice Trumps Criminals’ Author Name Student Number Abstract 15 years ago, California passed a law lowering the bars to prosecute serious juvenile offenders as adults. It increased the circumstances where juveniles would be charged as adults, as well as designated more offenses as serious, violent and dangerous.
According to TIME, 1 in 3 people have been arrested before they are twenty-three. “1 in 3 people are arrested before they are 23” (Reaves 5). So, they committed these crimes as juveniles, should they convicted as adults? They should only be convicted as adults if did a felony and they have a criminal record prior to that. They should be convicted as adults if they have a prior criminal record because people who have a criminal record prior to that are thirty-four percent more likely to commit another crime.
The Juvenile Justice System: Disabilities and the System On April 20th, 1999, two teenagers, one 17 and one 18, walked into Columbine High School in Colorado and killed 13 people. On February 14th, 2018, 19-year-old Nicholas Cruz walks in to Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Florida and killed 17 people. Societies reaction is how do we prevent it? How do we stop it from being our child’s school?
There are differences between a juvenile court and criminal court in the United States. The focus of the juvenile justice system is on rehabilitation, in hope of deterring the minor away from a life of crime so they will not commit a crime again as an adult. In contrast, the criminal justice system focuses on the punishment and often bases the sentencing outcome on the criminal history of the youth. In a study conducted, Butler (2011) showed that the participants’ experience with adult jails and prisons show that those facilities may instill fear but are otherwise emotionally—and often physically—dangerous for youth. Many of the adult prisoners, who were minors when they enter the adult institution, felt they were forced to “grow
Juveniles should be tried as adults due to being aware of their crimes and having an intention to kill, however, brain development and maturity can play a role into the reason why teens kill. With being tried as an adult juveniles should be granted the opportunity of freedom pending on their rehabilitation status and if requirements are not met, convicts will have to complete the remainder of their sentence. People have long argued that juveniles who commit a murder should not be tried as an adult due the juvenile not being aware of their crime. Awareness, as defined by the Webster Dictionary, is “the knowledge and understanding that something is happening or exists”. Having the perception to comprehend the occurrence of an event is not a dumbfounded characteristic.
Crimes are naturally committed daily by perpetrators, with those perpetrators predominately being juveniles. Crimes committed by young offenders, generally aged sixteen and under, often involve some sort of assault or theft. Criminals are often accused for crimes and sentenced a lengthy prison time. However, juvenile offenders are offered different options than adult prisoners. Juvenile offenders can serve their full prison time, follow the route through boot camp, or serve a certain amount of prison time and then probation.
Do you think you’re the same person you were 5 years ago? For many juveniles that commit violent crime, they are often charged as adults, despite being between the tender ages of 12-17, they are not presented the opportunity to change. Their chance at a normal adult life had been forcefully forfeit, because of decisions made before their brains had even developed completely. We should not subject juvenile criminals to adult crimes when their brains and decision-making abilities aren’t
In our society, crimes are being committed not only by adults but by juveniles as well. By law as soon as a person turns 18 they are considered to be an adult. So what if an adult and a juvenile were to commit the same crime yet were sentenced differently simply based on the fact that one is a child and one is an adult? Juveniles are committing violent crimes just as adults and should be given the equal treatment and sentencing as adults receive. Juveniles aren’t completely ignorant as everyone seems to think.
Juvenile Justice Should juveniles get treated as adults that’s one of the biggest controversy in our nation now days, with many juveniles committing crimes that are inconceivable according to their age. Judges have the last word on how to treat this young people. Many people argue that “the teens that are under eighteen are only kids, they won’t count them as young adults, not until they commit crimes. And the bigger the crime, the more eager this people are to call them adults” (Lundstrom 87). This is why people can’t come to a decision as how these young people should be treated like.
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.
For decades, the United States correctional facilities have had one of the highest incarceration rates throughout the world, contributing to excessive overcrowding. The rate for United States juveniles incarcerated is no different. The rate is about 300 per 100,000, which has significant consequences on these young individuals. Over the years, reforms have been concentrated on giving these delinquents an alternative option besides incarceration. Alternatives such as community-based programs have substantial long-term benefits for these individuals and the community.