Juvenile Justice Essay

Morals usually are the guiding principles in just about everybodys life. world generally tend to do what is considered to be right and astray from what is wrong, but in some cases, community choose to do what is considered wrong. However, people believe that children should be dealt with much more lightly because theyre not fully growns yet. On the other hand, I disagree that children should be exempt from punishment, and I full agree with the four jurists that believe a child who commits a heinous crime should be punished with a prison sentence of life without parole. The 8th amendment bans cruel and unusual punishment to protect its citizens. If a child commits a murder and goes unpunished, is that not a cruel punishment for the victims family? In Jennifer Jenkins On Punishment and Teen Killers, she states that there is no regard to the impact on victims families(10). The justice system is not doing its job if it is not getting justice for the victims family. Therefore it would be unconstitutional for the law to not punish the criminal for their heinous crime. Additionally, there have been researches and studies conducted in order to dissolve why teenagers act the way they do. Research shows that the brain is the very reason for these childrens actions. In Paul Thompsons article Startling Finds on teenage Brains, he deed of conveyances, massive loss of brain tissue loss occurs in the teen years and that it is, only being lost in the areas controlling impulses, risk-taking, and continence(7). This may explain why children act in this horrific manner, but it does not give them an excuse to commit crime. A rebuttal to Thompsons claim of defense would be Marjie Lundstroms article Kids are Kids-Until They Commit Crimes, when it points out theyre only kids. That is, until they foul up. Until they commit crimes(4-5). Kids are kids until they choose to make an adult decision and commit a serious crime. Whether the criminal is eleven or seventeen, they are mak ing a conscious decision to engage in a crime. Based on the premise that morals do not substantially change from young adulthood to adulthood, the offender should know that their crime is wrong. Thus, thepunishment should be mandatory as a result of the offenders actions. Children should pay their dues, even if that means life in prison without parole. If crime is dealt with lightly now, it bequeath only get worse as time progresses. A wise and responsible decision needs to be made so that society bum have a more safe and secure future.