<< Now, we've got this individual removed from society, now what? The only logical choice would be to do some research on why exactly this individual 'malfunctioned', by studying his brain-chemistry, firing patterns, his upbringing and environment and many, many more variables.
If we would do this with many more individuals who also 'malfunction', we would gain a gigantic amount of information. Other areas of science, like neuroscience would benefit as well.
Using this information we can start looking for a cure or treatment. If we find one, and once it has proven to be effective, the individual can take his or her place again in society. >>
To quote your own words back to you, "Either you're extremely dense, or you're talking to the wrong person." I do not care what the reason for him "malfunctioning" is/was. I don't care whether he has a brain chemistry imbalance, a bad upbringing or environment, or the many more variables you discuss.
I part ways with you sharply as soon as we get to the "doing some research" on him. You want the research done so you understand why he's "broken" so you can "fix" him. I only need it to know if he meets the legal definition of insanity:
DEFENSE, INSANITY - A criminal defense asserting that at the time of the commission of the acts constituting the offense, the defendant, as a result of a severe mental disease or defect, was unable to appreciate the nature and quality or the wrongfulness of his acts. Mental disease or defect does not otherwise constitute a defense. U.S.C. 18
In essence, the kid can be cuckoo like cocoa puffs, but if he was aware that what he was doing was "wrong" or he could be punished for doing it if he were caught, he has no defense. One way of determining that, would be if say the person being examined committed the act directly in front of an authority figure such as a policeman, because he was unaware what he was doing was wrong, or if he even would expect praise for doing so ("God spoke to me, and told me to kill a man i would pass in the hallway at 3pm who was wearing a blue tie").
If the kid fits this legal definition of insanity, then he should be locked up in a mental institution, and the key thrown away. If he does not, he should face a jury and whatever sentence they may mete out if he is found guilty, including the death penalty.
Where you go astray, is in your implicit assumption that there is no such thing as truly evil people, or that someone who commits acts like this must be "malfunctioning." When you start with this assumption, when someone commits acts such as this, you need to validate your worldview by saying the person must be "broken" and need "fixing" to commit such an act, as if depraved acts such as murder and rape were caused simply by a part going bad, like a motherboard with a leaky capacitor. We'll just RMA the boy, put him on the workbench for a bit, and he'll be as good and stable as new, and then we'll know how to "fix" the next kid who goes bad also. It's noble to believe that every man is basically "good" rather than evil, but also naive.