For years now it has been a big controversial argument on whether or not juveniles should be treated like adults in the judicial process. Both sides have very strong arguments as to why it should or should not be legal. There are many pros and cons dealing with this topic. There have been many different cases that have occurred that has struck up debate on whether or not juveniles deserve the same treatment. This judicial system had not always had this problem to deal with. Early court systems did not traditionally have the problem of having to try juveniles as adults or did not believe in it. Early court systems tried juveniles in juvenile courts as the juveniles that they were. Courts now allow juveniles to be tried as an adult for …show more content…
The only way that a juvenile can be sentenced life in prison without parole is if the judge and other medical examiners find that the juvenile is too dangerous to be released into society. Public safety is always a key concern and just as if it was a dangerous adult, juveniles are made sure that they are not a factor of danger once release from the corrections system. People may wonder the reasons as to why so many juveniles are being found committing as many harmful crimes that they are in today’s society. There is a list of reasons that the ACS Distance Education organization has listed to being factors as to why juveniles may be committing crimes or becoming more susceptible for it. In their lists they name peer pressure, peer involvement in problem behavior, lack of supervision, criminal parents, lack of discipline, family income, drug or alcohol abuse, mental illness, family conflict, opportunity for crime, and poor education. There may be several other reasons that juveniles are becoming active in crime but these are the main ones that stick out (ACS, 2014). Teens can often find themselves interacting with the “wrong crowd” and find themselves engaging in acts that may be new to them that are also illegal. If a juvenile allows themselves to interact and engage in those activities then they will begin to duplicate what they see and commit the same criminal acts. Parents and
One side argues that regardless of the age, crimes are still crimes. Just because a child commits the crime doesn’t mean that the victim didn 't indeed suffer from it. Juveniles should be tried as adults because it will not only make
There are a few repetitive reasons for young people to be involved in crime. These include poor parental supervision, drug and alcohol abuse, neglect and abuse, homelessness, negative peer associations, difficulties in school and employment.
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.
In today's society juveniles are being tried in adult courts, given the death penalty, and sent to prison. Should fourteen-year olds accused of murder or rape automatically be tried as adults? Should six-teen year olds and seven-teen year olds tried in adult courts be forced to serve time in adult prisons, where they are more likely to be sexually assaulted and to become repeat offenders. How much discretion should a judge have in deciding the fate of a juvenile accused of a crime - serious, violent, or otherwise? The juvenile crime rate that was so alarming a few years ago has begun to fall - juvenile felony arrest rates in California have declined by more than forty percent in the last twenty years. While
There are times juveniles should not be convicted as adults because sometimes the “crimes” may not harsh enough to be charged as an adult. For example, if a 8 year old saw a gun in their mother's purse and thought it was a toy and grabbed it and began to shoot who would be at fault ? Plus children in adult prisons are 10 times more likely to be taken advantage of in their time. Research shows that children prosecuted in the adult criminal justice system are more likely to reoffend than those held in the juvenile justice
There are a few common reasons for young people to be involved in crime. These include poor parental supervision, drug and alcohol abuse, neglect and abuse, homelessness, negative peer associations and difficulties in school and employment. The criminal justice system effectively deals with young offenders through unique techniques to address the challenges of dealing with juvenile offending. Even though young offenders commit a large percentage of crime, they also have the highest likelihood to be rehabilitated and change their lifestyles as they mature. There are several factors influencing crime by young offenders including psychological and
The main reason for having the two different justice systems is that children cannot be held to the same punishment levels as an adult. Even though a child has committed the same crime an adult may commit, not every child has a mental understanding to make mature adult like decisions. The juvenile
Often it would only be a conversation between the youth and the judge. The minor did not have legal representation at that time either. The early juvenile courts created a probation system and used a separate service delivery system to provide minors with supervision, guidance, and education. By 1967, the U.S Supreme Court determined that the Constitution require that all youths in the juvenile system have many of the same rights guaranteed to adults accused of crimes. This also included having the right to an attorney and the right to confront witnesses against them.
Imagine one of your family members being killed by a juvenile? Juveniles have killed more than adults in studies shown from 1981 to 1990. Juveniles that commit serious crimes such as killing should serve life behind bars because they need to own up to their actions.
Should Juveniles be waived to adult court Philosophy 14 Nov 98 Should juveniles be waived to adult court. There has been tension between teens (pre-teens) and adults for thousands of years, and the question how to deal with the youth of a culture, in a punishment sense, has been with us for just as long. Socrates, for example, stated that "children show little respect for there elders." Since Socrates time largely due to the spread of guns and drugs, younger and younger children are committing violent crimes. Children that have special needs or have committed a criminal act have been subject to state protection since, 1838. The first juvenile court was established in Chicago in 1890. The assumption, that was made
According to Caldwell (1961) the juvenile justice system is based on the principle that youth are developmentally and fundamentally different from adults. According to Mack (1909) the focus of the juvenile justice system has shifted from “was the crime committed” to “why did the child commit the crime”, “how can we help the child”. When performing as it is designed and up to the initial intentions, the juvenile court balances rehabilitation (treatment) of the offender with suitable sanctions when necessary such as incarceration. According to Griffin (2008) in some cases juveniles may be required to be “transferred” to adult court. In this paper I am going to discuss the three primary mechanisms of waiver to adult court: judicial waiver
Juveniles should not be tried as adults, no matter the crime only because there are other ways that the government could keep the ‘worse’ juveniles away from adults who could have a negative effect on the juveniles but also away from the juveniles who have committed minor misdemeanors and have a better chance of rehabilitation.
Do they know how to react the right way towards certain situations and are they doing this for attention? Juveniles take advantage of this time, they commit more violent crimes at a young age because they know the punishment will not be as bad. Children being raised in a bad neighborhood and hang with the wrong people may be the cause. Johnson says “Many gangs actually have their younger members commit the most heinous acts because they will receive a mild punishment and the gang member will be back on the street in a matter of months”. The parents or whomever the children look up to impact the children’s life dramatically, if the parents don’t show them the difference between right and wrong how will they know.
Teens being tried in the adult court system is becoming more common today. The Juvenile court system was first established in 1899 for teens to be treated through police, court, and correctional involvement instead of punishment. It was handling juvenile offenders based on their youth rather than their crime. Eventually, that all changed when teens were starting to commit more heinous crimes such as robbery and homicide. For fear that these juveniles would be a harm to society, many states such as Georgia, Michigan, and Texas have now made it easier for certain teens to be tried as adults (Tipton 2017).
Juvenile corrections encompasses the portions of the criminal justice system that deal with juvenile offenders. Many of these facilities and programs seem to mirror jails and prisons, but juvenile corrections are not meant for long term sentences. Sometimes sentences for juveniles are only several weeks long. Juvenile corrections also have a strong focus on rehabilitation because studies have shown that juvenile offenders are more prone to rehabilitation than adult offenders. These programs and services were aimed to help to teach