I asked my "newly minted" 15-year-old son what he thought about the Philip Chism case...

[kcr]

8. But the ability to form intent does not an adult make.

Some kids can form intent. In fact, most after a certain age probably can. But they're still not adults. We don't give them the ability to make adult decisions, even though they can form intent, for good reason. Even if we push for prison reform, and I think we should, we still need to treat minors differently because they're minors. That doesn't have to mean a slap on the wrist. I don't think the 14 year old being discussed should be out on the streets in 3 years, and he wouldn't, even if tried as a minor. No one is going to allow that to happen. The misconception that it would is what allows people to freak out and think that trying them as adults is the best way to go about it. And then there are people like my dad, who thought that 6 year old you mentioned should be tried as an adult. I remember that case well.