Twisted

From a very young age, we are all taught right from wrong and learn that all of our decisions come with consequences. A person’s age should never exempt him or her from the law and they should face all the consequences that they deserve. A crime is a crime no matter what and they should be given an appropriate consequence, regardless of age. Children who commit serious crimes should be tried as adults because they were aware of the crime they were committing and should not be absolved because of their age. 

Kids who commit serious crimes should be tried as adults in court because in the eyes of the law, everyone is equal and no one is too immature to possess morals. In the article, “Jennifer Bishop Jenkins on Punishment and Teen Killers” authored by, Teacher, Jennifer Jenkins, she states, “ I understand how hard it is to accept the reality that a 16 or 17 year old is capable of forming such requisite criminal intent,”. Jenkins is an educator who is surrounded by children for the majority of her days so she truly sees the reality of how these kids are and how they behave. She argues that, because she talks with these kids face to face and it is clear that they are completely aware of what is immoral. Interactions between a teacher and student is not a between and adult and a child, but between an adult and a young adult. Becoming an adult is not the crossing point that automatically allocates you morals. We all know how to behave from an extremely young age so, therefore committing these crimes are a conscious decision made, not dictated by the age of the person committing the crime. Hence, the punishment should also not be dictated by the age of the perpetrator. 

As a child/student myself, I see first hand just how other people around my age can be. I, as a person know that I am completely aware of my actions and I can differentiate right from wrong. Kids my age should never be excused from justice just because of their age. My age does not change the fact that I committed a serious crime and that I must suffer the consequences. When we become teenagers we are old enough to differentiate right from wrong. We are taught morals from a very young age and kids who commit crimes are fully aware of what crime they are committing but are just choosing to evade the law. 

Some people may argue that juveniles are too young to be charged as adults and their brains are not fully developed. However by the age of 16 majority of people can drive, work, and carry on multiple other responsibilities so what would prevent them from acting in a civil fashion?  In the article, “Should Juveniles Be Charged as Adults in the Criminal Justice System?” written by Nicole Scialabba, she states that, “The reason that juvenile courts were originally created in the nineteenth century was because society recognized that juveniles did not have the cognitive development that adults had.”. Committing crimes such as murder, rape and robbery are not caused by a lack of cognitive development, but by a lack of humanity and morals.  

Trying juveniles as adults creates a consistent and fair justice system. For example, there was a 12 year old girl who murdered her brother and parents in an attempt to be with her 23 year old boyfriend, who also murdered her family and her maximum sentence was 10 years, due to the fact that she was a minor. This creates an imbalance within the justice system and excuses minors from committing horrific crimes such as this one. There is no justice for her parents or her brother

because of her age. She should be tried as an adult and given the death penalty, even though there is no punishment she could serve that would excuse her from the crimes she committed against her family. 

In conclusion, Children who commit serious crimes should be tried as adults because they were aware of the crime they were committing and should not be absolved because of their age. We are all born with humanity and kindness and eventually, we learn other ways and those who choose a different path of committing crimes should be punished appropriately. There is no difference between a 12 year old murdering someone and a 50 year old murdering someone. Both should be held responsible, regardless of age because the justice system is all about accountability.