Minors Committing Violent Crimes and Being Tried as Adults

Too many minors have committed violent crimes and haven’t gotten the consequences they deserved. In Time magazine article, “Children without Pity” written by Nancy Traver, it shows how the crime rates are going up and many minors aren’t getting the consequence they need. Given the violence of their actions, minors who commit violent crimes should be tried as adults.

Crime has always been a hot topic in sociology. There are many different reasons for people to commit criminal acts. There is no way to pinpoint the source of crime. I am going to show the relationship between race and crime. More specifically, I will be discussing the higher chances of minorities being involved in the criminal justice system than the majority population, discrimination, racial profiling and the environment criminals live in.

From infancy onward, parents and teachers have drilled into the young generation that violence should be avoided at all costs. They have preached cooperation, tolerance, and “using one’s words” as tactics to combat difficult situations. Although those lessons are valid, Gerald Jones claims there is an alternative way. In his essay, “Violent Media is Good for Kids,” Jones argues that “creative violence- bonking cartoons, bloody videogames, toy guns-gives children a tool to master their rage” (Jones). In other words, media violence, used correctly, can serve as an alternative method for powering through adolescence. By reading and writing violent stories, children are able to express

Schools have an obligation to establish programs that develop students into citizens with the capability to form appropriate choices about violence otherwise, they may become inured to conflict and not obtain the capacity to have positive judgement. Karen Becker-Olsen and Patricia Norburg report in "Caution Animated Violence" that "Researchers have discussed two different outcomes of repeated exposure to violent media/ video games-one associated with aggressive behavioral manifestations and the other associated with desensitization to violence". The authors express the impact that violence has on children when they are in prolonged contact and how they are most likely to be impacted by the brutality. Moreover, young adults, especially of middle and high school age, are likely to be exposed to violence and need to be brought out of a mindset that fighting is acceptable. This book provides a stupendous example for students to see why bloodshed is not the course to take, and shows the consequences that may occur if they do choose to participate. When the main character, Jurgis Rudkus, gets into a brawl with his boss he has to face the ramifications of his behavior by going to jail. This highly impinges his capability to get a job because employers do not want to hire a former criminal when so many people are available, which is something that can be seen in our

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

These crimes are considered unethical resulting in fatal outcomes. Additionally, people tend to have compassion for juveniles when faced with criminal charges on account of age. Habitually children commit crimes since they believe their consequences are irrelevantly minor. This belief causes adolescence to continue their offences without thought of any consequences. In Baltimore police commissioner” Kevin Davis’ recent complaint that 90 percent of minors accused of serious crimes see their cases moved from adult court to the juvenile system” (Baltimore Sun 2017). Additionally, Davis believes juveniles accused of fatal crimes should become tried as adults which includes life without poral. Furthermore, the actions caused by juveniles may shape there lives

Murder is always a devastating sight, juveniles who commit homicides is another story. Sentencing a juvenile to life without parole isn’t the best punishment for a child that is developing in life. Juveniles are full of built up steam and emotions, they aren't comprehensive with the actions they take.

Many people believe that kids are kids until they commit violent crimes. Juveniles who commit violent crimes were tried as adults and had equal punishment, the number of violent crimes committed by youths would decline. Individuals who commit a crime do not think about the consequences they have to face. They are well aware of their surroundings and the actions they chose. Nehemiah Griego a fifteen year old who killed his parent and three younger siblings was sentenced as a juveniles and released from state custody by the time he turns twenty one (Article, p.1).

«  As more researchers have desegregated models of crime by race, they have generated research on the « racial invariance » question: whether Whites would exhibit the same crime rates as Black if Whites faced the same structural disadvantages as Blacks.

The topic I chose to  research is teens convicted as adults. The reason why I chose this topic is because if i had children and they did something heinous I wouldn’t want them to be put into prison with adults who can hurt them because they have cold hearts. For example, if my child was to steal something and had to be convicted I would want them to be in the juvenile system because of  the lack of safety in adult prisons and I would want my child to be safe. Due to the fact that,“there are an estimated 250,000 youth who are tried, sentenced , or incarcerated as adults each year.” juveniles should not be charged as adults because legislation to only have teens tried as juveniles because their brains are not developed yet , recidivism rates will decrease, alternative programs for juveniles who do not belong in juvenile detention.

Other researches have taken a look at, to what extent does social disorganization factors such as ethnic heterogeneity in neighborhoods; poverty; dilapidated housing; single families’ homes; and socioeconomic status might influence criminal acts/behaviors that are committed by racial and ethnic minorities (Sampson & Wilson, 1995; Sampson & Groves, 1989; Shaw & McKay, 1929). For example Shaw and McKay (1929) who we can consider the father of social disorganization theory, found that it was not ethnicity or race that influenced these groups involvement in crime, but rather the social disorganization and its location within the area that affected the crime rates. Within this research we will attempt to find ways gain and understanding as to why these areas tend to be more affected than others, and to examine ways to address the lack of support of Social disorganization and racial inequality within

As more minors are committing violent crimes, the question of whether they should be tried as adults has arisen. Children as young as 13 or 14 are committing violent crimes such as murder, rape, and armed robbery. Some of these children are being tried as adults while others are being tried as juveniles and receiving milder punishments. A juvenile offender may receive a few years in a juvenile detention facility and possibly probation following his release at age eighteen. An adult committing the same violent crime will receive a much harsher penalty, often years in jail, possibly a life sentence, with little or no chance of parole. The only difference between the two offenders is the age at which they committed the crime. Juveniles over

High school students who commit violent crimes should be tried as adults. Students that commit atrocious crimes should take full responsibility for what they did. Teenagers that commit a crime should be tried as adults as long as it is a heinous crime. The juvenile system is not enough for a teenager that has committed a violent crime. Trying juveniles as adults has resulted in fewer crimes. Since the government has started being harsher on students that commit violent crimes, the juvenile crime rate has dropped considerably. Secondly, the juvenile crime center cannot offer help to those who commit violent crimes. If a student has a mental illness, they should be helped and a juvenile center cannot offer that. Lastly, if you are tried as an adult you have more constitutional protections. The juries could be more sympathetic to a minor in an adult court. Trying students as adults has resulted in fewer juvenile crimes, the juvenile crime center cannot help teenagers that have mental illnesses, and being tried as an adult gives you more constitutional rights, are some of the reasons why a high school student that has committed a violent crime should be tried as an adult.

A policy brief from the Institute for Marriage and Public Policy (IMAPP) found that both the individual risk and overall rates of crime were reduced when parents were married. The brief summarized 23 U.S. studies published in peer-reviewed journals between 2000 and 2005, and determined that areas with high rates of family fragmentation (especially unwed childbearing) tended to have higher rates of crime. In addition, they found evidence that teens raised in single-parent homes were more likely to commit crimes (IMAPP Policy Brief, 2005).

Children view violence in different ways when they watch it on television, whether it is cartoons or a type of drama and action programming. After children have watched these television shows, they may have interpreted the meaning into a negative behavior. It could influence them by becoming aggressive, afraid of the world that surrounds them, or it may lead to confusion. When it is said that children may become confused because their parents teach that violence is wrong. When they view someone in a “superhero” position participating in violence, they may see that as it is all right for the simple fact the good person does the action. According to the American Academy of Children and Adolescent Psychiatry, “the impact of TV violence may be immediately evident in the child's behavior or may surface years later (AACAP, 2011).”