Reply #28: Knowing "that something is wrong" shouldn't be the only calculus for juvenile [View All]

[msanthrope]

justice.

Sure, teenagers know that murder is wrong. They know it abstractly, because they've been told so.

But most teens haven't developed their ability to judge consequences....their empathy is limited, and thus, their ability to perceive the logical outcomes of their behavior is also limited....they need more time for their moral centers to (hopefully) solidify.

Essentially, most teens lack the life experience that would give them enough wisdom to avoid crime. They don't 'get' the harm they do to others, and to themselves. It's why teens do incredibly stupid things that adults shake their heads at--criminal and non-criminal.

Psychological studies that bear this out have been the underpinning of much SCOTUS and state jurisprudence that has argued against execution of juveniles, or housing them with adults, and for alternative sentencing.

When I had juvenile clients? It was like dealing with an adult with diminished capacity.

I don't think automatic release at 18 or 21 is a good thing, but neither is a life sentence for a 14 year-old.