Juvenile Delinquent Sentencing
Name
Course
Institution
Due date
1840280
Juvenile crimes are more common in our today’s world. When sentencing a juvenile, the following factors are considered. The first factor is age, which plays a significant role in determining the ability of an individual to make a decision. The ability of an individual to make a competent adjudicative decision changes across the age. Research shows that psychosocial immaturity among youths inhibits their ability to make competent decisions regarding their sentencing. For example, research done showed that understanding Miranda warnings among juveniles aged 14 and below was low than those aged 15 and above. Age inhibits a juvenile from understanding their legal rights and their entire sentencing process; therefore, sentencing a juvenile considering their age is imperative. The second factor to consider is the defiant word. The judge must allow the juvenile to make a statement about the sentence imposed on them and mitigate their sentence.
The case I have identified is about Jones v. of Mississippi (LAW, 2020). Jones was convicted for stabbing his grandfather to death. The 15 years old boy was sentenced to life by the Mississippi court law. Jones’s age contributed to his life imprisonment; an adolescent aged 15 years is considered responsible for their crimes, that why Jones was sentenced to life just like a young adult. If Jones was below, maybe the sentence would be less harsh, like in the case of the 12 years boy who killed a boxer in Texas; the boy was sentenced to 40 years even though he had committed the same crime as Jones. Moreover, Jones was given a chance to say something about his sentence. Jones felt it was unfair, and he appealed to the court that he can rehabilitate; this shows that the court gave the defiant a chance to give their opinion about the sentencing.
References
LAW, B. (2020, Nov 25). U.S. Supreme Court Hears Case That May Impact California Juveniles Serving Life Sentences. Retrieved from BARHOMA LAW: https://www.barhomalaw.com/blog/u-s-supreme-court-hears-case-that-may-impact-california-juveniles-serving-life-sentences/