Juvenile Court Cases

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Background
Today’s court system has many difficult decisions to make everyday. One of the most controversial decisions is whether to to try certain juveniles as adults or not. On one hand, being tried as a minor is considered unconstitutional, while on the other side it seems necessary in order to protect society.
In 1974, Congress passed the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act, which still is still around today. Basically, the act required the separation of juvenile offenders from adult offenders. The 1974 act also created the federal Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) and offered states money to help develop community-based programs as alternatives to jail. Once the media began to headlining rising …show more content…
Juvenile cases are held with a mediator and judge instead of a jury to work out what happened, and to discuss a fair punishment. However, minors could receive a better chance at court , and have a chance to defend their case properly with a jury present. Juries in adult court often give shorter sentences to the juvenile, because they can sympathize with a child being in court. Certain cases have shown that without a jury, judges have too much power to convict juveniles unfair punishment. (Powered).
People who support juveniles being tried as adults, argue that if a person is old enough to commit a crime then they are old enough to face the consequences, and that public safety is a bigger concern than an individual’s life and choices. A major misconception is that children who commit violent acts are those who are mentally ill. Mental illness plays a big role in these court cases, and usually decides if an individual seeks mental help, or faces charges. People who are against juveniles being tried as adults often mention that most of the children are mentally ill. However only 4% of minors who get trialed as adults suffer from any type of mental illness, and many try to fake mental illnesses that they do not have …show more content…
Without education, these juveniles have a very hard time adjusting to normal society, and usually have to commit more crimes in the future to survive. (Walrond) Life is extremely tough for minors, because they are victimized so much more than the average inmate, due to them being an “easy target.” It’s unfortunately very common for juveniles to be sexually abused while in adult prison, not only by inmates, but by staff too. In fact, staff members were responsible for 75 percent of all rape cases reported. Juveniles are also 36x more likely to commit suicide while in adult prison.
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