Death Penalty for Juveniles the Essay

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The research shown to the Supreme Court suggests just the opposite about them (Liptak, 2005).

Third, evidence shows that many teens in jail for serious crimes have significant mental health problems. Representative Henry Waxman (D) of California noted that in his state, one of the most populous in the country, there is little competent psychiatric help for youthful offenders who are incarcerated. He and his staff found that hundreds of teens held in California services were not getting the mental health services they desperately needed (Author not stated, 2005). 70% made suicide attempts while incarcerated, and nearly 75% attacked others (Author not stated, 2005). In spite of such clear evidence of instability, nearly six out of ten California facilities lacked staff with mental health training. Youthful offenders, meanwhile, had a wide range of diagnoses including not only substance abuse but AD/HD, retardation and learning disabilities (Author not stated, 2005). These are all conditions where competent mental health staff could help the young people so that when they were freed they would be less likely to offend again, but the staff isn't there.

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Instead, California has a growing population of incarcerated teens who desperately need psychiatric help but who will not get it even though their difficulties have contributed to the commission of serious crimes.

While we might be able to make a case for many adult offenders that they are hardened criminals who cannot be rehabilitated, this seems a harsh stand to take with teenagers, especially when it is clear that many need psychiatric help but will not get it. The statistics surrounding this Supreme Court decision are significant; the death sentences of about 70 offenders will have to be reversed based on this ruling. Whatever we may say about the death penalty for hardened adults, we should still have rehabilitation as a goal for our youngest criminals. Eliminating the death sentence for teens not yet fully mature is a decision whose time has finally come......

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