Argumentative Essay : Why Should Children Be Tried As Adults

Whether juveniles should be tried as adults in the justice system or not, has been an ongoing debate for many people. There has been many cases throughout time where people under the age of 18 have been tried as adults in the justice system. Information about this debate can be found in articles, novels, and podcasts. Typically people who are under the age of 18 are identified as a juvenile delinquent and go through different procedures after committing a crime. There is many examples and evidence of why juveniles should not be tried as adults. A juvenile is typically considered a person who is under 18 years of age.

There is much debate over whether or not juveniles should ever be tried as adults. Juveniles are defined as children under the age of 18. In the past, juveniles have been tried in a separate juvenile court because of their age. However, trying juveniles as adults for violent crimes is a trend that is on the rise. Age is supposed to be a deterrent for placing those under 18 on trial and giving them stiffer punishments that are often reserved for adults. Many debate whether or not juveniles really should have less severe punishments or if trying some juveniles as adults will lower juvenile crime rates.

Approximately two million adolescents a year are arrested and out of that two million, 60,000 of them are incarcerated according to the American Journal of Public Health. The 60,000 incarcerated adolescents each year are being tried as adults in court because of the serious crimes they have committed. The crimes they have committed are anything from armed robbery to murder. Some juveniles might be first time offenders and others might be repeat offenders. Crimes have always been a major issue in the United States and can cause controversy in the criminal justice system. Charging a minor as an adult in criminal court varies from state to state based on each state’s jurisdiction. Some states consider anyone up to the age of 18 still a juvenile and would not be charged as an adult in criminal court, but other states may charge a juvenile as an adult at the age of 16 or 17. Jordan (2014) states, “Although states already had methods for transferring youth to the adult system, as a result of the growing fear of juvenile violence, most states implemented new laws to increase the number of youth entering the adult criminal system’ (Bernard & Kurlychek, 2010; Torbet et al., 1996)” (p. 315). While it sounds beneficial to incarcerate more adolescents in the adult criminal justice system to avoid juveniles from committing crimes in the future, that is not always the case. Incarcerating these juveniles can be life changing in a negative

Juveniles should be tried as adults because they only serve a few years in prison, they deserve a harsher punishment, and they are committing crimes at a younger age.

Today, the juvenile system primary goals are crime reduction and rehabilitation. The juvenile officials must assess whether youthful offenders are likely to commit crimes in the future and whether they can benefit from interventions. If these kids cannot benefit, then they will most like end up a delinquent. In most states delinquency is defined as the commission of a criminal act by a child who was under the age of 18 at that time (Virginia Rules). Most states allow youth to remain under the supervision of the juvenile court until the age of 21, but this depends on the type of crime that was committed. There has been many times where a juvenile case was transferred to an adult criminal court. This would have to be done thru a process called a waiver. A waiver is when a judge waives the protections that the juvenile court provides (Larry J. Siegel). Cases that

Cecelia Jones Period 5 The Juvenile Court System In the early 1900s, the idea arose that children that commit crimes should be treated differently than adults who commit crimes. So in 1899, the New York House of Refuge was opened as the first juvenile court. Following the creation of this juvenile court, other states also began creating juvenile courts.

Transferring Juveniles to Adult Court Youths are not generally tried in adult court for the crimes that they commit. This is because most of the crimes committed by youths are not serious enough to justify incarcerating them alongside adult offenders. Most youths are tried in juvenile court and are sentenced to serve time in juvenile detention facilities if convicted. However, this does not apply to youths who are convicted of more serious crimes, such as murder. The age at which a person can be tried in adult versus juvenile court differs between states.

In the court of law many difficult decisions are made, and one is whether juveniles should be tried as adults or not. Many teens today are being placed in an adult prison for crimes they have committed. The crimes these teens commit are not necessarily their fault, but a poor choice they made. Teens should not be tried as adults for the risk of being sexually abused, not having a well developed brain, and having a higher risk of them committing suicide.

In the United States, juveniles have always known to cause trouble in the community. In recent times, many individuals have the perception that juvenile crimes are on the rise and that these offenders are getting younger. Charging juveniles as adult has always been a debate, because of their thinking process and protecting their rights. There are many cases that regard juveniles that have changed the policies of this nation. Also for those juveniles that are convicted as adults, there are many challenges that correctional officials have when housing them. Waivering juveniles to adult court has many factors to it and whether or not juveniles age thirteen and fourteen should be

In conclusion, juveniles tried as adults is unjust. Juveniles should not be tried as adults for several reasons -- because considering young people as adults alters the legal process, because there is a difference of legal standards in adult and juvenile courts, because the brains of young people are not fully mature until their mid and late twenties, and because adult courts do not offer rehabilitative programs

The juvenile justice system is very similar to that of an adult justice system. Young criminals go through the same process an adult criminal would go through, including: arrest, detainment, petitions, hearings, probation and reentry. Many states have different standards as to when a person is considered to be an adult, bringing lots of controversy. As fourteen states do not even have a minimum age a child could be tried as an adult. Why is it that children are not capable of understanding life until the age of eighteen and cannot make decisions for themselves, but once a crime is committed the child surely knew what they were doing and could be tried as an adult? If under the age of sixteen children should not be tried as adults, as many times children do not understand the consequences of their actions.

The use of moving a child from the Juvenal Court system and placing them in the Adult Court system to stand trial for criminal offenses as an adult in a judicial process that has been happening, more and more, in the United States over the past 40 years (Kilkelly, 2016). The criminal charges that have faced the young offenders under the age of 18 moving them to receive harsh punishments from the Adult Court Systems in the United States are crimes such as rape, murder, and drug offenses just to name a few of them (Kilkelly, 2016).

Juveniles can be tried as adults for crimes ranging from kidnapping, murder, rape, arson, robbery, torture, assault, and more. Some of the cases that are sent to adult court are petty crimes, such as: underage drinking, possession of a controlled substance, and other minor crimes. The question is whether they should be tried as adults. These are all adult actions, on one hand, and may lead a person to wonder what brought a child to commit these crimes. One might further inspect that if a child or teenager is engaged in so-called “adult” activities, what kind of activities might a child choose to be involved in adulthood? What is the child’s background? Can you blame the child of a heroin addict for having access to drugs at a young age? Can you blame the child of a murderer for acting out? Yes, everyone has a choice even a child.

According to Street Law, a juvenile is any person who is not yet an adult. In most states and the District of Columbia, individuals under 18 years of age are considered juveniles. The District of Columbia along with most states in the United States view any person under the age of 18 that has committed a crime as a juvenile criminal. Acts of a juvenile crime include but are not limited to: truancy, smoking, drinking, theft, rape, murder, defiance towards parents or guardian, etc. A juvenile criminal can only be held in a juvenile institution until the age of 21, no matter how gruesome their offense may have been.

Would you consider a juvenile who commits a crime such as murder an adult? Over the years there has been many cases of juveniles committing crimes for possession of drugs, committing murder or other crimes but they fall under the name juveniles for a reason. The word Juvenile means a young person and if they’re being judged as adults why do we call them juveniles? A juveniles is only a person who is barely learning about live and they may commit the crime due to several reasons. A juvenile may commit a crime because they may have a broken home with bad influences, they still haven’t developed their brains to the fullest and because the juvenile has problems at school or work (if the juvenile works).