Argumentative Essay On Juveniles As Adults

Locked away, surrounded by older strangers who constantly abuse him, the teenage convict wastes his life away as days go by, knowing that he will never get back the life he once lived. Countless others like him, along with over 232 inmates in California, are in adult prisons serving life without parole for a crime they have done in their teenage years (Hernandez 6). At times, adolescents commit unspeakable, heinous crimes, rising controversy over whether or not they should be incarcerated as adults in prison. Many argue that trying juveniles as adults is the only way to bring justice to the crimes these young criminals have committed, which are often atrocious and odious acts. Juveniles, however, should not be receiving this type of sentence when the verdict is read at the end of a trial, for they are just children who have made terrible mistakes. Adolescent
When it comes down to a direct statement, a crime is a crime, and someone must be punished for what has been done. In addition, supporters claim that age is not an excuse for committing heinous crimes, for even juveniles must know what is morally correct or incorrect. However, this is not a valid argument, for age is actually imperative when deciding the punishment, especially since “the region of the brain that is the last to develop is the one that controls many of the abilities that govern goal-oriented, ‘rational’ decision-making, such as long-term planning, impulse control, insight, and judgment.” (Arya 9). Besides, adolescents would still be sufficiently punished for their crimes by spending time in a juvenile detention center, along with other punishments a judge may present. However, they would not be punished to a terrible extent as they would be in the adult system, and they would continue to be