The following research draws upon different opinions and perceptions for and against the further enactment of the death penalty for juvenile offenders. The various articles that are presented draw conclusions on the pros and cons of using the death penalty as punishment for young offenders. Numerous views surfaced in my research such as the views of president Bush, prominent authors and court officials as well as the views of individual states. .
In order to fully evaluate this sensitive topic I have presented a mixture of opposing perceptions related to the question should juveniles receive the death penalty for capital offenses? A collection of questions will be answered, first what are the reasons for abolishing the death penalty? Secondly, why does the death penalty for juveniles remain? How often is the death penalty given to juveniles and what if any are the profiles of juveniles on death row? Lastly, is discrimination present when studying the juvenile death penalty in relation to age, race, mental ability, and previous circumstances?.
Overall, each article provides separate interpretations that intermingle or conflict on the debate of the death penalty for youth. In an in depth analysis on a controversial issue it is essential to discuss both sides of the argument and interpret the main underlying points of the different perceptions and define the bias that is illustrated.
1. Cothern, L. (2000). Juveniles and the Death Penalty. Coordinating Council on .
Juvenile and Delinquency Prevention, 1-15.
B. Cothern presents through an historical analysis of the death penalty and research on inmates the suitability of the death penalty for juveniles in comparison with the basis for which the juvenile justice system was originally established. The article presents the issues that the juvenile justice system was founded upon in order to hold juveniles accountable for their crimes, while supplying treatment and rehabilitative programs.
-There are 81 juveniles currently on death row in the United States, 64% are people of color. ... This year, the DRC established a moratorium on executions, Pakistan abolished the death penalty for juveniles and Iran announced that it is preparing to do the same. ... -Contact Death Penalty Focus. ... -Start a Death Penalty Focus chapter at your school. ... -Attend national conferences on death penalty organizing. ...
In the seventeen years from when the death penalty was reinstated, 17 men were executed for crimes that they committed as juveniles. ... Debate about the use of the death penalty for juveniles has grown more intense because of the demand for harsher punishment for serious and violent juvenile offenders and challenges to the death penalty's legality. ... In this paper I will discuss the evolution of the death penalty and its application to juvenile offenders, justifications for sentencing juveniles to death row, and why proponents feel that there are other alternatives. ... Without ruling...
Also thrown into the mix is the issue of the death penalty for juveniles. ... The greatest costs of the death penalty are incurred prior to and at trial, not in post-conviction proceedings. ... Even if all post-conviction proceedings were abolished, the death penalty system would still be more expensive than the alternative. Aside from the deterrence myth and astronomical costs of the death penalty, it is important to consider the mindset of a juvenile who commits even the most egregious act. ... Their "Color of Justice" study is only the tip of the iceberg when we consider the ramificatio...
Should Juveniles Be Subject to the Death Penalty? ... Should a juvenile be subject to the death penalty? ... Retentionists seek to hold the current death penalty laws unchanged for these reasons: (1) the death penalty is a deterrent for criminal behavior, (2) a murderer is not capable or deserving of rehabilitation, regardless of age, and (3) the cost of keeping a juvenile incarcerated for a life time would be too high. ... A proponent of the death penalty would argue exactly this point. ... The average murder rates among death penalty states were 8.0, and the average among non-death p...
Issue: The goal of this paper is to show the pros and cons and give information on the juvenile death penalty. ... Although there are those who have good arguments for the juvenile death penalty, which will be presented later on in my paper, I think that it's a shameful practice. ... The Federal Government has imposed the death penalty against American Indian children for crimes they committed as young as ten years old (The National coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty). ... There are many arguments that support the use of the death penalty for juveniles. ... In modern day only...
Juveniles are highly incapable of making reasoning and lifelong decisions. ... Sentencing teens to the death penalty is cruel and unreasonable; therefore, juveniles should not be sentenced to the death penalty. ... Murderers do not expect to be caught or to be sentenced to death, so the threat of the death penalty has no effect on them. ... "Ten of the 12 states without capital punishment have homicide rates below the national average," the Times said, "while half the states with the death penalty have homicide rates above the national average." In a state-by- state analys...
Con's Those who oppose the death penalty feel very strongly about their opinions. ... JUVENILES Pro's Those who feel it is right to kill juveniles by the death penalty agree that murder is a serious offense at any age. ... Also juveniles on death row might be unable to fully understand the consequences of their actions. ... Then the jury decides on a final verdict, either life without parole, or the death penalty. ... Clearly, the real question here is: Is the death penalty effective, fair, and morally right? ...
Proposition 21 allows courts to try juveniles as young as fourteen in adult court, imposes stiffer penalties for gang related offenses, and increases penalties for serious crimes (Text of Proposition 21, 2000). ... Juveniles commit many of these homicides. ... Confidentiality/Juvenile Records Prior to the passage of proposition 21, juveniles tried in the juvenile court were afforded the benefit of confidentiality. ... -Gang Shooting from Vehicle causing GBI/Death. ... New Death Penalty Special Circumstance Proposition 21 has enacted the following as part of California's death penalty st...