Should Minors Get Tried As Adults Essay

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Should minors get tried as adults? Do you know that known juvenile offenders were involved in at least 640 murders in the U.S. in 2012, representing about 7% of all known murder offenders? Think about that; what if one of those murder victims was your family member, good friend, co-worker, or an acquaintance? How would you feel if someone you knew and loved was brutally murdered by a minor? Minors should be tried as adults. Most make up excuses for minors, but when they commit gruesome crimes they should be tried as adults. They can’t be let off easy because of their age. If a minor can commit a crime, they are fully aware that there are consequences to those actions. Plus, if they get a “slap on the wrist” they will move on to bigger crimes. Lastly, the Declaration of Independence states that if anyone interferes with somebody’s “life, liberty, or pursuit of happiness,” they will be tried as an adult regardless of their age. Minors are fully aware of crimes they commit such as robbery, rape, aggravated assault, or murder. Yes, the brain doesn’t fully develop till early or mid 20’s, but you learn what’s right and wrong way before then. You’re supposed to know what you want to do for the rest of your life by the age of fourteen; so to say a minor is not aware or mature enough to comprehend their actions is ridiculous. For example, Graham Young was a chemistry genius; he got a post graduate student’s level of knowledge by the age of fourteen. Unfortunately, he used his knowledge to murder his father, mother, sister, and grandmother. Even after being institutionalized, he murdered staff. He was later released and again he killed more family and friends. He was sent to prison for life after that. Minors tend to get a “slap on the wrist” for committing heinous crimes. The biggest excuse is minors don’t understand the trial process. My answer for that is they have parents and lawyers to help them through that. All they need to know is the outcome of the trial. Minors that get small punishments for their crimes end up committing worse crimes in the future. For example, Jesse Pomeroy was a fourteen year old boy who was arrested for the murder of a four year old boy. Three years previous he had sexually torture seven boys. He was sent to a reform school for those crimes and was released not too long after. Not too long after, he mutilated and killed a ten year old little girl; then a month after that he snatched a four year old and killed him with a knife. This boy was continuously given chances to prove he was going to change
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