Juveniles Should Not Be Mandatory Essay
Four years ago on June 25th, the Supreme Court ruled that juveniles who committed heinous crimes could not be sentenced to mandatory life imprisonment because it violated the Eighth Amendment’s ban on barbaric and unusual punishment. Justice Elena Kagan, speaking on the behalf of the majority, adds that “Mandatory life without parole for a juvenile precludes consideration of his chronological age and its hallmark features- among them, immaturity, impetuosity, and failure to appreciate risks and consequences.” A child is not a man as he isn’t granted the privileges an adult would have. Which end of the spectrum do I stand in this controversial topic? I wholeheartedly agree that juveniles who commit horrendous murders should not face mandatory life in prison as they still undergo changes in their brain, their upbringing may have been dysfunctional, and there are other alternatives that are less expensive and more effective. Adolescent brains haven’t fully developed nor matured. Grey matter, which is responsible for thinking and emotions in the
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teenage brain, shrinks in size about 1 to 2% every year during the teen years. In contrast, there’s an increase in white matter, which is said to be the beginning of the brain’s neural links for adulthood. Ruben Gur, a PHD Director at University of Pennsylvania Medical Center, states that “the evidence now is strong that the brain doesn’t cease to mature until the early 20s.” In other words, adolescent brains are still in the process of developing in certain major areas that govern impulsivity, judgment, planning, and etc. The adolescent brain is like a vehicle without brakes and it makes youths more prone to risky behavior. While the brain is still maturing, the reward seeking system is highly aroused, which makes teens act upon excitement and seek after rewards. Consequently, teenagers are less likely to stop, think, or be fully aware of their actions.
A large amount of children are exposed to violence, whether it be in school, neighborhood, or home. 72% of violent youth in jail has experienced emotional, physical, and sexual abuse and 27% were those subjected to 2 or more types of abuse. Family is an important aspect of a child’s life because they educate children to be respectful and control intolerable behavior and having a lack of this may explain the reason why a juvenile ended up being a delinquent. Positive parenting during the early childhood acts as a barrier, preventing delinquency. Children need positive role models and figures to follow after and look up to because they’re most vulnerable to negative outside forces like peer pressure. William McGuigan, an associate principal of human development and family studies at Penn State, adds that, “we have to look more into neglect and become more aware of how it may cause some of these violent behaviors.” Simply put, the court system shouldn’t brush aside this problem, rather they should dig deeper to find the root cause of juvenile delinquency and from there, send youths where it is appropriate. Environmental influences are often something that’s beyond teenager’s control.
Prison is costly and an ineffective punishment for youth. For instance, it is said that the cost of sending youths to jail is approximately $407 a day per teenager or about $150,000 to keep a juvenile in jail for 9 months to one year. On the contrary, rehabilitation programs are about one-fifth of the price, at $75 per juvenile. “We can re-invest those resources into things that are much better,” says David Muhammad, director of the National Council of Crime and Delinquency, “like in-home family counseling, mentoring, and other positive youth-development approaches.” Instead of locking up kids and leaving them there to rot, the money wasted on jail could be saved and used to guide and change youths for the better. Placing children in rehabilitation programs would transform youths into productive and better individuals as it provides services that allows them to correct their behavior, something prison won’t be able to do. Youths who are transferred to adult jail systems, an unsafe environment, are more likely to reoffend compared to those in rehab. It is estimated that 9.5%, 1720 nationwide, of teenagers in jail are victims of sexual abuse by fellow inmates or staffs. Kids will be exposed to more harm, isolation, and further trauma, thus reinforcing their behavior for the worse.
Should the courts now reconsider juvenile sentences and take a different approach in dealing with them?
Juveniles should not be tried as adults as their brains are still developing, their childhood may have been abusive, and there are cost effective alternatives. The court officials and judges should take into consideration of the various underlying factors of youths committing crime. Getting rid of mandatory life sentences is necessary and juveniles should be placed into rehabilitation programs instead. Children will be future leaders and the future is in their hands, therefore, society has to lead them on the right path. Locking a mere child into a cage and throwing away the key is not the right way to go, rather steps should be taken to ensure their safety and allow them the chance to remedy their behavior because prison won’t provide the guidance they need. With help, juveniles will mature and become responsible
adults.
teenage brain, shrinks in size about 1 to 2% every year during the teen years. In contrast, there’s an increase in white matter, which is said to be the beginning of the brain’s neural links for adulthood. Ruben Gur, a PHD Director at University of Pennsylvania Medical Center, states that “the evidence now is strong that the brain doesn’t cease to mature until the early 20s.” In other words, adolescent brains are still in the process of developing in certain major areas that govern impulsivity, judgment, planning, and etc. The adolescent brain is like a vehicle without brakes and it makes youths more prone to risky behavior. While the brain is still maturing, the reward seeking system is highly aroused, which makes teens act upon excitement and seek after rewards. Consequently, teenagers are less likely to stop, think, or be fully aware of their actions.
A large amount of children are exposed to violence, whether it be in school, neighborhood, or home. 72% of violent youth in jail has experienced emotional, physical, and sexual abuse and 27% were those subjected to 2 or more types of abuse. Family is an important aspect of a child’s life because they educate children to be respectful and control intolerable behavior and having a lack of this may explain the reason why a juvenile ended up being a delinquent. Positive parenting during the early childhood acts as a barrier, preventing delinquency. Children need positive role models and figures to follow after and look up to because they’re most vulnerable to negative outside forces like peer pressure. William McGuigan, an associate principal of human development and family studies at Penn State, adds that, “we have to look more into neglect and become more aware of how it may cause some of these violent behaviors.” Simply put, the court system shouldn’t brush aside this problem, rather they should dig deeper to find the root cause of juvenile delinquency and from there, send youths where it is appropriate. Environmental influences are often something that’s beyond teenager’s control.
Prison is costly and an ineffective punishment for youth. For instance, it is said that the cost of sending youths to jail is approximately $407 a day per teenager or about $150,000 to keep a juvenile in jail for 9 months to one year. On the contrary, rehabilitation programs are about one-fifth of the price, at $75 per juvenile. “We can re-invest those resources into things that are much better,” says David Muhammad, director of the National Council of Crime and Delinquency, “like in-home family counseling, mentoring, and other positive youth-development approaches.” Instead of locking up kids and leaving them there to rot, the money wasted on jail could be saved and used to guide and change youths for the better. Placing children in rehabilitation programs would transform youths into productive and better individuals as it provides services that allows them to correct their behavior, something prison won’t be able to do. Youths who are transferred to adult jail systems, an unsafe environment, are more likely to reoffend compared to those in rehab. It is estimated that 9.5%, 1720 nationwide, of teenagers in jail are victims of sexual abuse by fellow inmates or staffs. Kids will be exposed to more harm, isolation, and further trauma, thus reinforcing their behavior for the worse.
Should the courts now reconsider juvenile sentences and take a different approach in dealing with them?
Juveniles should not be tried as adults as their brains are still developing, their childhood may have been abusive, and there are cost effective alternatives. The court officials and judges should take into consideration of the various underlying factors of youths committing crime. Getting rid of mandatory life sentences is necessary and juveniles should be placed into rehabilitation programs instead. Children will be future leaders and the future is in their hands, therefore, society has to lead them on the right path. Locking a mere child into a cage and throwing away the key is not the right way to go, rather steps should be taken to ensure their safety and allow them the chance to remedy their behavior because prison won’t provide the guidance they need. With help, juveniles will mature and become responsible
adults.