Juvenile or Adult? What are the differences between an adult and a juvenile? Brainstorm a list of qualities that characterize a juvenile versus an adult. As you develop a list of characteristics, come to the board and write them under each label. You can come to the board as many times as you would like within the time-frame allotted.

Juvenile Justice Quickwrite (10 minutes): On the backside of your “Senior Year Reflection”, respond to the question below. Be specific and provide examples to support your reasoning when necessary. Part I: If a 17 year old committed a heinous (horrible, shocking) crime, do you think it would be fair for them to be punished the same way as an adult who committed the same crime? Part II: Now, imagine the same scenario; however, the person is 14 years old. Do you still feel the same? Why? If your position changed, why?

Key Concepts Whether or not sentencing juveniles as adults is appropriate and fair. The distinction between adults and juveniles. Whether age alone makes a person a juvenile or if other qualities give a person that designation.

Writing Assignment Write a multi-paragraph essay in which you analyze and argue whether or not juveniles who commit particularly heinous crimes should be tried as adults. Consider, should adolescents be held to the same level of responsibility for their actions as adults?

Unit Readings “Kids are Kids – Until They Commit Crimes” “Sarah-Jayne Blakemore: The mysterious workings of the adolescent brain” “Startling Finds on Teenage Brains” “On Punishment and Teen Killers” “Juveniles Don’t Deserve Life Sentences” “Greg Ousley is Sorry for Killing His Parents. Is That Enough?”

“Kids are Kids” As you read and annotate the article “Kids are Kids: Until They Commit Crimes” take a moment to identify the arguments for or against punishing juveniles as adults. What is the author’s position? What information from the text informs you of the author’s opinion? Look for the presence of ethos, pathos, and/or logos. Do you agree or disagree with the author’s position? What does the author want readers to question?

Summary “Juveniles Don’t Deserve Life Sentences” Write a summary of the article (1 paragraph). A summary is a shorter version of the text that contains all of the essential information—and nothing extra. Identify the title, the author, the source, and the date of publication in your summary, and write the entire summary in your own words; do not use quotations from the original source. Write a response to the article (one paragraph). A response is your personal reaction to the text. For example, what personal experiences have you had that cause you to agree and/or disagree? Why? Does the author make a particularly strong or weak argument? Explain.

Gred Ousley Discussion Using your annotated copy of “Greg Ousley is Sorry for Killing His Parents,” write three questions that you would like to discuss with other students in your class. These questions should be about significant issues that the article raises, and should not have a right or wrong answer. An example is the question below:   Example: Can our knowledge about the development of the teenage brain help us understand why Greg Ousley killed his parents and why he behaved the way he did afterwards?

Terminology Term Definition Homicide Murder First-degree Murder Killing of one person by another, either intentionally or unintentionally. Homicide includes accidents and murder. Murder Killing someone with malice of forethought. It could be done while committing another crime. First-degree Murder Killing a person with malice of forethought; the killing was planned. Second-degree Murder Killing done during a crime deemed dangerous to a human life. The crime was most likely not committed with the intention of killing. Voluntary Manslaughter killing someone intentionally but without malice of forethought. For example, if the killing was a crime of passion (killing a spouse or lover because of jealousy), the intention was to kill. Involuntary Manslaughter killing someone unlawfully but without malice of forethought. It was committed without intent to kill and without a conscious disregard for human life.