Trying children as adults, how is this not unconstitutional?

[amdhunter]

Depends. What race is the child?

 

[TheSiege]

THat's because black kids commit crimes at vastly higher rates.

There are 9 times as many blacks being tried as adults. If there are 10 black kids and 10 white kids who committed crimes, 9 blacks would be tried as adults and 1 white kid. Its not that complicated to understand.

 

[Naeeldar]

There are 9 times as many blacks being tried as adults. If there are 10 black kids and 10 white kids who committed crimes, 9 blacks would be tried as adults and 1 white kid. Its not that complicated to understand.

I'd love to see links. I don't buy those numbers. So where are you getting this info from.

 

[ichy]

There are 9 times as many blacks being tried as adults. If there are 10 black kids and 10 white kids who committed crimes, 9 blacks would be tried as adults and 1 white kid. Its not that complicated to understand.

I think that you're a liar and I won't believe you unless you cite a legitimate source.

 

[TheSiege]

http://www.campaignforyouthjustice.org/

 

[TheSiege]

there is a thing on digg also

 

[ichy]

I am sick of people acting as if "non-violent" was synonymous with "minor" or "victimless." If some piece of shit steals YOUR stuff or breaks into YOUR car it seems like a pretty damned serious crime.

The other issue of course is kids being used in the drug trade. The problem there isn't the juvenile justice system, it's the whole failed War on Drugs.

 

[nehalem256]

There are 9 times as many blacks being tried as adults. If there are 10 black kids and 10 white kids who committed crimes, 9 blacks would be tried as adults and 1 white kid. Its not that complicated to understand.

Your second sentence does not follow from the first. If 9 times as many black teenagers commit crimes as white teenagers then one would expect 9 times as many to be tried as adults. Its not that complicated to understand.

 

[T_Yamamoto]

In. North Carolina, 16 year olds can be tried as adults. Woo

 

[TheSiege]

I meant to say 9 times as likely

 

[Chiropteran]

What is the point of having a separate system for children if children are regularly tried as adults? Just use the same justice system for everyone.

 

[TheSiege]

What is the point of having a separate system for children if children are regularly tried as adults? Just use the same justice system for everyone.

Its more about the punishment...

 

[Jeeebus]

I meant to say 9 times as likely

Well, if a nifty chart with pictures says so, then it must be true. Did you bother to read any actual sources or are you just taking the chart as the gospel?

 

[TheSiege]

Well, if a nifty chart with pictures says so, then it must be true. Did you bother to read any actual sources or are you just taking the chart as the gospel?

Everything on the internet is true

 

[ichy]

What is the point of having a separate system for children if children are regularly tried as adults? Just use the same justice system for everyone.

Because there are plenty of actual "juvenile" offenses where kids should be given a bit more leeway than adults. IMO a 15 year old may not be as likely to grasp why something like shoplifting is wrong, and the legal system should deal with them accordingly. For crimes like rape and murder though anyone who's not mentally defective should know that those are unacceptable.

 

[HardcoreRobot]

agree, dumb. using age as a delimiter for anything is very arbitrary.

it sounds like some crimes should just use one single justice system.

 

[Naeeldar]

I meant to say 9 times as likely

Didn't see any hard numbers of the number of people sentenced. I work with data and usually that means they are spinning it their way for obvious reasons. The way it's written, I could very easily see it being 9x more blacks tried as adults then whites. Until I see hard numbers anyway.

 

[CVSiN]

Not to mention if you are black you are 9 times as likely and latinos are 4 times as likely to receive an adult sentence compared to their white counterpart.

Sorry last time I checked the jails and prisons were 80% full of Blacks and Latinos vs whites and Asians and others.

And in most of the cases it is underage kids using the crutch of going to Juvi instead of jail/prison to commit horrible crimes. Since Juvi is a cakewalk compared to real jail.

So if they would quit breaking the law this wouldn't be an issue.

If they are old enough to kill or rob someone.. they are old enough to go to big boy jail.

As for rehabilitation.. we know that is a myth. they are never rehabilitated.

I am all for the death penalty being used far more than it is..
why prolong a scumbags life by letting them sit in prison taking up space..
kill them and lets be done with it.

If you want to be a productive member of society play by the rules or die.
Guarantee if it was instant death sentence for most crimes that people would think twice and crime would go through the floor.

 

[Juddog]

If a kid murders someone in cold blood, I could really give two sh!ts how old they are - they deserve to be tried as an adult. End of story.

I have seen plenty of adult-type violence by kids as young as 14; there was a kid in one area of the city I grew up in that was 14, he was selling crack, owned several guns, and has probably shot one or more people in the past. For some people, whether it's genetic or the way that they were raised, violence is simply part of them like it or not.

 

[alkemyst]

children are not protected by the constitution to begin with, they have no rights.

 

[Nintendesert]

I don't see the problem with locking up criminals. Don't want to get locked up, don't be a criminal. Maybe the over represented minority groups should take some notes from the under represented minority groups and learn what it means to be a productive non-criminal member of society.

 

[Druidx]

To the OP, Why point to a problem but fail to suggest a solution? You're making this an issue in general when it's actually handled on a case by case basis.

 

[Jaskalas]

This area of law is intended to be decided on the circumstances. You wouldn't want it as draconian as three strikes, would you?

 

[ichy]

Three strikes laws were an awesome idea. I don't know why people knock them so much.

 

[boomhower]

Then why have an arbitrary number to vote? To serve in the armed forces? To drink? To smoke? To rent a car? To rent a hotel room? To gamble?

Then the drinking/voting/military age should be lowered accordingly. Either you're generally recognized as mature enough, or you aren't. I'm ok with lowering the mentioned ages to 13. That's when Jews think you're an adult, and is pretty accurate historically. It's only in recent times we treat adults as children, and the age keeps getting extended. Soon we'll never grow up, and daddy government will care for us for life.

I don't disagree. What needs to happen is develop a way to test for maturity as not all kids mature at the same rate. 13 is to young. My step-son is 13 but has matured slowly. No way he should be allowed make the decision to drink, smoke, drive a car, or gamble. That said, if he went to school and killed a classmate he should be tried as an adult. He knows what he's doing and he know's the consequence of that action. There are certainly steps in maturity, th trick is finding out a way to determine where they are.