Should Juveniles Ever 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.

Juveniles should be tried as adults when they commit serious crimes as opposed to rehabilitation or various forms of lesser sentencing. The rate of juveniles in prison has increased over the years. Many young adults and children often seek for attention which leads them to cause trouble out in the streets. There are risk levels that officers have to make in order to help the juveniles or if committing a serious crime, they should pay the consequences. Many may oppose and think that young adults and children are not adults, but they should be punished for the crimes they have done.

If we simply send juveniles through the adult justice system it might make them worse individuals. For instance, since their minds are still growing, by being around worse criminals they may pick on their criminal traits.

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

Crime and punishment seems to be the hot topic in modern society. People from different age ranges go to different levels of prison, depending on what they have done. Sometime juveniles are tried and sent to prisons suited for adult crimes if it’s serious enough. Should we tried juveniles as adults if the criminal act is severe enough? What impact does it have on the juveniles? Would juveniles being tried as adults than being tried as juveniles yield a better outcome? Is there a benefit from juveniles being tried as adults?

Juveniles should be tried as adults because they only serve a few years in prison for doing harsh things. Manuel Sanchez and John Duncan committed a bloody murder by shooting a man several times in the chest, and John and Manuel were only twelve years old at the time. For example, “ It was a brutal, callous, bloody murder. But what is even more shocking to people in the small Washington town of Wenatchee is that John Duncan and Manuel Sanchez are only twelve years old.” I found this information in the article “ Rethinking Juvenile Justice” ( John, 1). Instead of the boys

In today's society, there are many crimes going on. Adults are not the only ones that commit crimes. One issue today is that juvenile offenses and whether juvenile offenders should be tried as adults in criminal court. A common phrase that is often used in this case of young juveniles committing crimes is "Old enough to do the crime, old enough to do the time." This phrase should be cleared to people that juveniles are not adults, and with this being said it will not make them one. "It has redefined juvenile offenses by treating most of them as delinquent acts to be adjudicated within a separate juvenile justice system that is theoretically designed to recognize the special needs and immature status of young people and emphasize rehabilitation over punishment" (Steinberg). While juveniles should be responsible for their actions, and should be held accountable for the crime, then the juvenile justice system is design to determine the consequences. Youths are still minors and are less mature. They often face a lot of negative peer pressure. Therefore, juveniles should not be tried in courts as adults.

Many serious crimes are committed daily and some by juveniles under 18. When serious crimes are committed these juveniles get tried as adults and receive adult sentencings. Many people argue that such juveniles should not be tried as adults because they are just kids and are still developing. In my opinion, I agree that juveniles should not be tried as adults, however I also believe they should receive adult sentencings but to a lesser degree, because they are not yet fully developed, they have potential to change, and it is not fair that they are underage but are being tried as adults.

Most of the time, the system has proven itself to be unsuccessful in dealing with juvenile crimeMost often, the system is unsuccessful. “There are kids who are five times more likely to be raped or otherwise sexually assaulted in adult prisons than in juvenile facilities. The risk of suicide is likewise much higher for juveniles in adult jails.”(How to reduce crime Pg 3). When juveniles are sent to jail, they are still relatively impressionable from people in the prison, and may go back into crime after they’re released, hindering rehabilitation and just creating another violent criminal in the world. The court sentencing the criminal is also at

Juveniles should not be tried as adults because it is proven that children are incapable of making a rational, mature decision on their own. Adolescents have a shorter experience in the world, their brains are still developing, they do not have the same responsibilities or rights as adults and they are easily influenced at this age. Let 's say a child around the age of twelve is playing with two other friends at his house. His mother and father both work constantly so these children are alone. They are snooping around in his dad 's room and find a gun. Not being old enough to understand or realize it 's not a good idea they begin to play with it. One of the children pulls the trigger not considering what could happen. He accidentally shoots on of the other children and he was instantly killed. They decide to call 911 and before they arrive the child that accidentally shot the other tells his friend to tell them that it was his fault because hed get in trouble by his mom. The boy agrees and tells the police it was his fault and he is sent to adult prison for the maximum sentence. Children are both easily influenced and not as intelligent compared to an adult. These children are so immature and underdeveloped they should not and cannot make rational decisions on their own.

Although some people believe that juvenile offenders should be treated like adults and take the same treatment as adults. The sentencing of a juvenile offender should not be tried as an adult, children should not be given the same handling as adults do, adults are different from kids. Adults know how to intake all of the effects of being treated the way they get treated in jail. Children are not capable of the pressure of being treated like adults yet, it also puts a lot of pressure on the juvenile and creates mental breakdowns. This is not right nor fair for children to have to be tried as adults, it is not the same punishments that adults get in jail, it’s more of a harsh and cruel system for adults than for the children to be placed in the facility they are in and get treated like they do.

In addition, think about how they will be affected if tried as an adult and convicted. Let us remember, the United States has the Juvenile Justice System, which is solely for juvenile delinquents. This is supposed to protect them from receiving longer sentences, and harsh punishments, which is the opposite of adult courts. Also, the Juvenile Justice System is supposed to help rehabilitate the juvenile. Luckily, for juveniles, the “court had recognized that even homicide does not warrant a mandatory life sentence without the possibility of parole if the offender is less than 18 years old at the time of the crime” (Holt p.1395). However, in “Nevada, Mississippi, and Utah, lawmakers now leave it up to the juvenile courts to decide whether to transfer a juvenile to adult court” (Brown p. 21). Unfortunately, juveniles sent to adult prison suffer physically, mentally, and emotionally. With that

The numbers of Juveniles being tried, and convicted as adults within the U.S are beginning to rise drastically. There are many reasons for the sudden increase such as lack of space in juvenile detention centers, and the rise in repeat offenders. This is starting to become a serious issue due to the effects that this act has on kids under the age of 18 no matter the crime at hand. Cambridge Dictionary describes a Juvenile Delinquent as, “a young person, usually under 18, who commits a crime” (Cambridge Dictionary) Many Juveniles are being tried as adults as well as convicted due to the crime committed. Though this is a strong argument as to why they should be allowed to live among adult convicts, the effects that this move can have on juveniles

Imagine sitting in a courtroom, hoping the the judge will not give a harsh sentence. Unfortunately, that’s the case for many juveniles, some as young as 13! A juvenile is subject to a more severe sentence with the limited sentencing available. It is estimated that 250,000 youth are prosecuted as adults, each year. This number should change, as juveniles are not adults, both mentally and physically. Juveniles need an environment surrounded with guiding adults, education and the resources to help them. A juvenile is not an adult, and should not be tried as one.

I do not think it is a good idea to lock juveniles up in prisons with adults. For a child to set down and plan a murder for instance, there would have to be some kind of deep emotional problem. On the other side of this, if the child knows right from wrong and he can sit down and plan a murder, then you could say if he is old enough to kill someone then he is old enough to die. The juvenile criminal is rooted much deeper than right from wrong. It starts back from when they are small children. Most of them are usually outsiders or outcasts. Who can you hold fault for that other than society? If juveniles don't fit in with the popular kids in school they are considered an