Wisconsin girl in stabbing attack in Slenderman case changes plea

[Sand Rat Expat]

17. Yeah, no.

A 12-year-old is perfectly capable of knowing that it is wrong to stab another person. Most of us learn not to physically assault others before we even make it to school, let alone by the time we're in middle school. I realize that the human brain doesn't fully mature until around age 25, but by 12 a child is old enough and developed enough to understand that attempted premeditated murder is wrong. These girls' age is absolutely no excuse.

That being said, if mental healthcare professionals deem that she is indeed mentally ill to the point that she is unable to discern right from wrong, that changes things, because in that scenario her age has nothing to do with her impaired judgment.

Genuine mental illness is a mitigating factor here. Age is not.