children and crime response

Instructions

The development of adolescent teenagers and young adults, according to researchers, illustrate that these stages of life are represented by rapid change. However, the age threshold at which criminal responsibility may be made should be examined. For instance, as much as 20 as I previously mentioned to be the likely threshold age, at 19, a person’s reasoning may not be different than in a 20-year old. However, the regions within the brain linked to response inhibition, risk, and equal reward calibration, and emotional regulations in a 19-year old would often still be similar to other younger teenagers. Therefore, the complex needs and reasoning at 19 should not be treated similarly to those offenders who have already reached 20.

Most of the problems associated with a 19-year-old such as substance abuse and cognitive immaturity characterize undeveloped populations of criminal justice. Nevertheless, age variations like 19 and 20 may not show an emotional, physical and social reaction or response inconsistency. Since the difference is not clear enough to be made into law and applied to all, it is vital to compound the age threshold using some assistance from psychological experts, as you mentioned. Therefore, rather than applying a stable age threshold, licensed psychiatrists should be consulted in such matters. At these two ages, one would argue that their maturity rate may vary considerably. Due to these diverse development trajectories, a particular age threshold at certain life stages, like in this case of 19 and 20 years of age may not be an ideal approach. Licensed professionals like psychiatrists should be used to determine a defendant’s competency in comparison with adult-reasoning. Equally, charges should be made following the expert results to decide if one is more comparable to an adult or juvenile justice system.  

Please make a personal response to the below text keeping in mind of the text above in red –

If children engage in criminal behavior, I believe that at the age of 18 is when they should be treated as adults.  I am choosing 18 years old because this is the age where most people now consider themselves “adults” and start to branch out to lead their own independent lives.  Currently 18 years old is one of the milestone ages where people are granted more privileges.  At 18, you become eligible to vote, enter into contracts, have a checking and savings account by yourself and many other things. At 18, you may legally marry and consent to sex with people over 18 without a parent’s approval.   I also believe a competent 18-year-old definitely knows right from wrong.  Many kids that are around 18 are preparing to head off to college and start to make their own decisions so the assumption is that you become more responsible for yourself.  

Although, I feel as if 18 is a good age to be able to accept responsibility as an adult for committing crimes, I also feel as if someone younger than 18 that conspire and commits crimes such as premeditated murder and other violent crimes similar in nature should be able to be tried as adults.