Should juvenile offenders be tried as adults? This question has become a hot topic recently in this country. Nearly everyone from lawyers and judges, to politicians has expressed their opinion on this subject, and while everyone seems to be talking about it no real conclusions have been reached. When talking about juveniles being tried as adults there are no easy answers, but when all the factors have been weighed, with the exception of murder, the negative affects of juveniles in the adult system outweigh the positive. One of the key reasons for this is because before one can answer the question of youths being tried as adults they must first answer many other questions; some of which go deep into the core fundamentals of the American legal system. Juveniles should not be tried as adults.
It cannot automatically be assumed that such a young offender could grasp the serious consequences of their actions. Underage offenders, being anyone under the age of 18, should not be subject to criminal punishment in adult courts because they are not mature enough to be fully responsible for their actions.
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