Should a 13-year old murderer be tried as an adult?

[aandegoons]

77. No in my opinion.

Constitution proclaims equal protection in the 14th amendment. Treating one child offender differently to another and should be illegal.

All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside. No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.

Treating 13yr olds as adults is just a way of selective application of laws to deny some children of their rights. It has been shown many times that certain races do not get tried as adults for certain types of crimes as much as minorities do.

It is also estimated that each year well over 150,000 children get declared adults for criminal offenses most of them very minor offenses.

The big push for treating children as adults came along with the push to privatize our prisons. I believe it is tied to both a drive for profits and a way of minimizing cost to the state. None of which should be used to determine punishment.

It is punishment and we should be striving for rehabilitation. Child correction facilities are most likely to include at least some forms of rehabilitation.

Children tried as adults are much more likely to repeat offend or become career criminals. Children tried as adults are also more likely to become violent criminals.

Children tried as adults often do not get an education and are often abused in prison.