Jacob Ind Case Study

Of the cases I viewed, Jacob Ind’s case really caught my attention. In this paper, I will be covering the backstory to Jacob’s life, the results of his actions, and my take on his sentencing. Jacob Ind, was 15 years old whenever he and his classmate Gabriel Adams, (17) murdered his mother and step-father. Inside the home, Jacob and his brother Charles were sexually assaulted and emotionally and physically abused. Whenever Charles turned 18, he decided to move out of the home, but he claims before he left he talked to social services about keeping an eye on Jacob and helping him. Charles claimed that social services had told him they had taken notes and planned to investigate the incident, but they failed to do so. A few months after Charles went to reach out for help, Jacob shot his mother and step-father to death.
In this case, it is hard to decide whether Jacob was guilty or not, whenever a child is being physically, emotionally, and sexually abused they are not in their right mind.
I think that this was an unfortunate thing that happened to this young boy and I wish that someone would have gotten him help before it was too late. I think that Jacob should have received a life sentence without parole because he chose to murder his mother and step-father and he was old enough to know right from wrong. I feel like he should’ve reached out and tried to get help at school. Jacob’s brother, Charles speculated that he thought his mother knew what was happening, so for Jacob to take her life without knowing if she was aware of the situation makes me lean more towards him deserving to be in jail. I know Jacob must have been angry and that because of his anger he killed them both, but I do not think Jacob had a reason to kill his mother, due to Charles statement resembling
speculation. I do not consider Jacob a hardened criminal, I think that due to the abuse he suffered Jacob made an irrational decision that he didn’t consider the long-term effects of. I do believe that life without parole should be subjected towards children, as well as adults because there is a certain age where you know what is right and what is wrong. Children should not be allowed to murder and get away with it, if people who are only slightly older spend life in jail for the same crime. In the justice system, you must be fair and a child who is close to the age of accountability should know that there are consequences to their actions. I don’t think that rehabilitation would help Jacob in this case, due to him spending most of his conscious life behind bars and seeing his parent’s dead most likely left him traumatized. I think that since he has been through all of that he probably would not know how to function in regular society outside of bars because he was so young whenever he was sentenced to life. I think that children should be held accountable if they are close to the age of accountability and if they are old enough to understand what is right and wrong. It is hard to pinpoint an exact age, but at the age of fifteen you would understand that if you murdered someone you would be held responsible for your actions.
In conclusion, I think that Jacob Ind’s sentencing was fair. People seen Jacob as a child because of his age, but you can’t take pity on people who are being served justice.