Overview of Juvenile Justice

Questions for Thought At what age do you begin to understand that there are consequences for your actions? At what age did you learn that stealing is wrong? At what age did you learn that killing someone is wrong? On a number scale, determine what rights you should be given at what age and justify your beliefs.

Terms Homicide: the killing of one person of another either intentionally or unintentionally. Homicides include accidents and murder. Murder: the killing of someone with malice of forethought. It could be done while committing another crime.

Terms, continued 1st Degree Murder: the killing of a person with malice of forethought (planning); the crime was planned. It was done deliberately and is illegal. 2nd Degree Murder: a killing done during a crime deemed very dangerous to a human life. The crime was most likely not committed with intention of killing.

Terms, continued Voluntary Manslaughter: the killing of someone intentionally but without planning. (ex: crime of passion) Involuntary Manslaughter: killing someone unlawfully but without planning. It was committed without an intention to kill and without a conscious disregard for human life.

Quickwrite At what age would you consider someone a juvenile vs. an adult? If you committed a serious crime, do you think it would be fair to be punished the same way an adult who committed the same crime would be? Why or why not? What types of punishments should adults receive vs juveniles?

Using your knowledge of the preceding terms, determine how the following crimes should be classified and what the suspects deserve as their sentence.

10 year old shoots neo-Nazi father On May 1, 2011 a ten year old boy shot his father in the head while he was sleeping on the couch. Jeffery Hall was a member and director for the National Socialist Movement and reportedly abused his son and wife. The ten year old was afraid that his dad was cheating on his mom and he would be expected to choose whom to live with.

You be the Judge What crime should the now 13 year old boy be charged with and what should his sentence be? Explain your rationale for your decision.

Decision of the US Justice System On January 14, 2013, a California judge ruled that the then ten year old boy committed second-degree murder-and he knew what he was doing was wrong. He is spending the next 10 years in a juvenile facility. He could remain in custody until his 23rd birthday, though he could be freed sooner or have a number of other living arrangements as determined by the judge.

16 year old drunk driver kills 4 Ethan Couch, a 16-year-old who drove while drunk killed four people and injured two others. He sideswiped a broken down car and killed the four people who had stopped to help, and two other teens were thrown from the bed of his pickup truck (one is no longer able to move or talk due to a brain injury). Couch had three times the legal limit of alcohol in his blood (that’s the limit for adults—minors shouldn’t have any alcohol in their blood), and he also had Valium and THC in his system.

You be the Judge What crime should Ethan Couch be charged with and what sentence does he deserve? Explain your rationale for your decision.

Decision of the US Justice System The Texas Judge believed the defense’s claim that the young man suffered from affluenza. The term affluenza came into public use with a 1997 PBS special and subsequent book of that name. In that original context, the term referred to increasing materialism and “keeping up with the Joneses.” In poor man’s terms: he is too rich and has been given too much so one cannot comprehend their actions. The defense argued that Couch shouldn’t be held as responsible because his parents were so permissive in their style of child rearing that Couch did not experience socially appropriate consequences for his socially inappropriate behavior. Rather than the 20 years of jail time the prosecution asked for, Texas Judge Jean Boyd gave Couch absolutely no jail time and instead sentenced him to 10 years of probation and time in a long term treatment facility. That facility costs $450,000 per year, paid for by Couch’s wealthy parents. Among other amenities, it offers equine therapy and organic food choices.

Shooting of Officer Pompei June 9, 1995 Summary of Crime: Two armed male suspects (16 and 17) robbed a grocery store. Officer Pompei (30) was off duty and intervened as one of the suspects began pistol whipping a box boy with special needs. The officer announced that he was off duty police and both suspects shot Officer Pompei in the torso, and as he turned, once in the back. Pompei called 911 from a payphone outside and was pronounced dead two hours later.

The suspects were able to get away because an 18 year old brother to one of the suspects drove the getaway car. Suspects had been injured and went to the hospital where they were admitted and put into a room together. Suspects were taped and their confessions and plans to escape to Mexico were later used as evidence during the trial.

You be the Judge What crime should the following suspects be charged with and what punishment should they receive? Explain your rationale for your decision. 18 year old getaway driver 17 year old shooting suspect 16 year old shooting suspect

Decision of the US Justice System 18 year old driver of getaway car was up for death penalty but pled guilty and acted as a witness in exchange for 26 years to life. 16 and 17 year old suspects sentenced to life without the possibility of parole for first degree murder.

Quickwrite #2 Revisit your first quickwrite and explain if you agree or disagree with your original response. What evidence persuaded you and why? If your opinion hasn’t changed, explain why and what evidence helped to reinforce your original belief.

Now read the following scenarios and fill in the boxes.   Actual situation Crime or conviction Punishment or sentencing A troubled 17-year-old girl has slowly poisoned her parents each night at dinner. After three months, she came home to find them dead on the kitchen floor. The coroner’s report indicated that cyanide poisoning caused their deaths. Three 16-year-olds were hanging out at the park drinking whiskey. One boy started shoving his friend. Soon the shoving escalated into punching. One boy tripped, and his head hit a sharp-edged rock. The boy died before help arrived.

Suspicious that his girlfriend was cheating, a 16-year-old boy went to her house and found her in bed with his brother. Impulsively, he grabbed the nearest lamp and hit his brother on the head. His brother died two days later.   A 13-year-old boy broke into an auto parts business to steal hubcaps. The 17-year-old security guard picked up his boss’s gun and fired two warning shots at the thief. The second shot hit the 13-year-old and killed him on the spot.

Overview of the Juvenile Justice System relatively new system—the first juvenile court established,1899 created to address criminal and problem behaviors among children between the ages of (approx.) 10 to 18

Basis of the JJS “Childhood” was created in the early 19th century and stages of childhood, “adolescence” defined shortly afterward Developmentally distinguished adolescents from adults emotionally, psychologically, and physically Supported 2 notions: (1) culpability (2) ability to change

Juvenile v. Adult Justice Systems Juvenile System Adult System Goal(s) Rehabilitation Punishment Style Non-Adversarial, Confidential Adversarial, Public Terminology Medical Model Legal/Constitutional Role of Family Very Significant Little to No Significance Process Adjudication/Delinquent Trial/Guilty or Innocent Sentencing Indeterminate-Broad Determinate-Focused

Are Adolescents Different from Adults? Increasingly, research demonstrates that adolescents are not little adults Adolescence is a period of intense physical, emotional, and cognitive development Forced to make choices under the worst conditions Exposed to highly risky situations Often overestimate their understanding of a situation while underestimating the consequences of their actions Further complicated when youths live in disadvantaged, high risk environments Perhaps most important for this discussion is the fact that adolescents process ‘emotionally charged’ information from a more reactive, gut-level place than adults