Juveniles Tried in Court

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Recommended: Should courts treat juveniles like adults

Laws regarding the age at which young people can be tried as adults must change because allowing juvenile offenders lighter sentences under juvenile court laws is only enabling their behavior and failing to teach them about real consequences to crime, yet not always in the best interest of the child such as alternatives are.
It is necessary in some cases to send the juvenile to adult court for prosecution. But it is really hard to keep kids safe in an adult jail. Also by not giving youth their own separate facility they are not getting the proper education that they need to survive if they are ever released from prison (Gerdes 118-122). The Prison Rape Elimination Act had to be passed because so many juveniles were being raped wile in an adult prison. Also being isolated for a long period of time has shown to cause mental health problems more in juveniles than in adults (Ryan 3 of 5). Even when the adult offenders and the youth offenders are separated, youth offenders are isolated. This means that they are locked down for 23 hours a day, no human contact, and never seeing the sunlight. This can cause mental health disorders, depression, and an increase in suicide rates (Gerdes 121-122). By trying juveniles in an adult court, research shows that they were rearrested faster and more frequently than those tried in Juvenile court. Nine out of fifty states are allowing the release of juvenile court records without as many restrictions as before (Edgar 15 of 37). “Developmental studies have shown that youths are ill prepared to participate in adult court proceeding and are unable to adequately recognize the long term consequences of their legal decisions” (Ryan 1 of 5). After the age of 17 the Supreme Court says that it is legal to be t...

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...on In Juvenile Sentencing." Tampa Bay Times (2013): 2. web. 19 November 2013.
Edgar, Kathleen. "Crime and Punishment." Youth Violence, Crime, and Gangs: Children at Risk (2004): 37. web. 19 Novenmer 2013.
"Hard Times; Juvenile Crime." Student Resources in Contex 26 October 2013: 2. web. 20 NOvember 2013.
"Mandatory life without parole still applies to some." Student Resources in Contex 17 September 2013: 2. web. 19 November 2013.
Rubin, Ted. "Juvenile Courts." Dictionary of American History. (2003): 4. Web. 19 November 2013.
Ryan, Liz. "Kepping Youths Out of Adult Jails and Prisons." 75.2 (2013): 5.
SENTENCING, LEGISLATURE SHIRKS DUTY ON JUVENILE. "Tampa Bay Times." 18 November 2013: 2. web. 20 November 2013.
Smith, Patricia. ""Crime and punishment: the U.S. Supreme Court bans mandatory lifewithout-." Junior Scholastic/Current Events (2012): 8. Web. 19 November 2013.

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