Last Chance in Texas: The Redemption of Criminal Youth

Hubner, John. (2005) Last Chance in Texas: The Redemption of Criminal Youth. New York, NY. Random House Inc.

In the most recent years, the relationship between educational institutions and the juvenile justice system which was once created to protect children, has displayed an ultimatum for minors through “zero tolerance” policies which results in sending individuals through the school to prison to pipeline. Studies have shown that these zero tolerance policies are not beneficial to students or the educational environment that should be guaranteed to children. Opponents argue that the policies promote safety, but through this research it can be concluded the policies actually increase danger. Studies demonstrate the factors that affect the enforcement of these policies which include media, the sociopolitical atmosphere, and the racial disproportionality, yet there are valid solutions for this issue that can be explored.

Over 1/3 of the 11,000 index crime arrests were juveniles under the age of 16.

There have been many studies conducted that examine ways in which the juvenile justice system responds to female offenders. Historically juvenile female offenders have been treated under status offense jurisdiction (Zahn et al., 2010, p. 10). United States Courts would exercise the principle of “parens patriae” to place the female in detention as a form of punishment for misbehavior (Sherman, 2012, pp. 1589-1590). This principle also remains prevalent as it pertains to how the juvenile justice system currently responds to juvenile female offenders.

Juvenile justice settings, especially in Texas, were not designed as sites for comprehensive psychological and psychiatric treatment of adolescents’ mental disorders. On national, state, and local levels there has been a major increase in the interest of mental health needs within the juvenile justice system. Evidence-based research and data has become more available with societies interest into this matter. A continuous struggle with Texas policymakers and officials is identifying and properly treating mentally ill juveniles and keeping them out of the justice system. Acknowledging established data and comparing it to current Texas mandates helps seek recommendations for improvement within all levels and jurisdictions of the Texas juvenile justice system.

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.

Skip Hollandsworth candidly explores the subjects of juvenile crime and sentencing in the electronic long form newspaper article, “The Prisoner”. The purpose of the essay is to inform the reader about juvenile sentencing and to persuade the audience that there are clear problems with aspects of the U.S. prison system. The article is easily accessible to a large audience because it is online. Hollandsworth takes into account that his audience, mostly consisting of Texas Monthly readers, may already have pre-established notions about the topic, so he considers other sides while still supporting his argument. Edwin Debrow, a preteen member of the Crips, committed a murder when he was 12-years old and received a 27-year sentence through the

Today’s heated debate regarding the decision to try juveniles as adults has prompted individuals to construct opinionated and informational articles on the topic. The nation’s troubled youth are protected by groups that believe these offenders deserve rehabilitation and a chance to develop into a productive member of society. However, others believe that those committing certain heinous crimes should be tried as adults as a means to protect public safety, prevent second offenders, and “dispense justice in the form of punishment” (Aliprandini & Michael, 2016). Because these perspectives offer a reasonable and valid argument, juveniles responsible for major crimes

Throughout this essay, I am going to be looking at the topic of youth offending. I will be looking at what factors can be used as the predictors for youth offending and in particular I will be researching into how important social and cultural factors as predictors of youth offending. In order to do this, I will be looking at different sociologists theories as far as young offending is concerned and what evidence there is to support these theories. I will then conclude by discussing whether I believe social and cultural factors are important in determining youth offending.

Ron was the son of Hazel Anna Meardy, stepfather John Henry Meardy and father Harold Kessler. Ronnie

Oh. lol bin When he was a kid, he moved a lot. But when he lived in the same home for 6 years 12-18. Ronald parents called him Ronnie.

This is the longest the twins had been separated from each other. Reggie was back in his home in Hoxton with his mother and grandfather, Jimmy Lee, while his poor brother Ronnie suffered alone at the hospital. Due to this, Ronnie was constantly begging for his mother 's attention. He was lonely and demanded his mother 's love at all times. She took him out of the hospital on her own accord since she knew he would only get worse lying in the hospital all day. She was right and Ronnie started slowly improving. Violet and Reggie also noted a change in Ronnie as the days went by. No longer was he the playful, outgoing boy he used to be. He was more shy and reserved, and much less talkative. Since Ronnie was so young when he had diphtheria, it could have caused permanent impairment. Ronnie and Reggie started to act up more as they got older, and Ronnie constantly tried to outdo his seemingly perfect brother (Pearson 25-26).

Explain: Ronnie dropped out of school in the 8th grade; he was 15 years old.

“I used to believe are our future but now I realize that this, sadly isn’t the reality. Through laws that treat kids like adults, the government is throwing away the future of children in this country.” (D. Lee) An estimated 200,000 juveniles are tried as adults. The term juvenile refers to any young person under the age of 18. For most states in the United States, the age of majority is 18. While there are many things that juveniles are unable to do until they reach the age of 18, being charged as an adult for a crime is not amongst those things in some states. Juveniles are not allowed to vote, drink alcohol, or sign a legal contract, yet they can be charged and treated like adults when it comes to them being

He rides to help save lives for individuals who have no other options and feel they are not part of anything. When interviewed Ronnie said that being in a biker group that goes around helping people is the most self fulfilling part of bike riding, but he also says that people do in fact judge him without even giving him a chance.He gives people the benefit of the doubt and a place in the family of the church. He was kind enough to let me borrow a motorcycle for the day and we rode to monterey and back with 46 other bikers. No fights, drinking, or drugs we involved the whole way there and the whole way back. That just proves that just because a group has common characteristics with a notorious biker gang doesn't mean that they partake in the same illegal activities as similar groups. Biker gangs ride around supporting groups and bring hope to people,they may look mean but no biker wants to look like a wimp when riding, they want to look like a total Bad Ass.