Punishment of Juvenile Offenders

How are people who commit violent crime differ from others? We know that race, poverty, and where you live are not statistically significant for children who are violent criminals. Almost all violent criminals are young. Other predisposing factors include father's absence, family history of violence, poor physical condition during pregnancy, and treatment for children. Most repetitive violent criminals lack compassion.

Many people believe that the death penalty should not be punishment for juvenile offenders who committed murder. If juvenile offenders can not understand or control their behavior, it is cruel and unusual punishment to condemn juvenile offenders to death. Before the children commit a crime they will certainly not consider the idea of ​​being executed for a crime. The death penalty does not prevent crimes or plant fears for criminals. Teenagers can be responsible for their actions and crimes without sacrificing their lives. Teenagers can get rehabilitation, society should not easily give up. They should have the opportunity to help themselves and reverse their lives. If you get right support, they can learn from their own experience and continue to be a productive part of society.

Discussions on the use of capital punishment for adolescents are getting more intense as they require more stringent punishment for serious and violent juvenile offenders and a lot of debate about the legality of the death penalty. According to a recent opinion poll for Oklahoma residents, 62.8% of respondents say they will support the law prohibiting the execution of juvenile offenders. There is no parole of life judgment (Heartney). According to the study by Cohen and Kluegel, the experience of adult punishment system shows that the recidivism rate of juvenile offenders has increased. Another study conducted by North Eastern University in 1996 found that teenagers who were transferred to the criminal court system had been held for a longer time.