The juvenile justice system was founded based on the understanding that minors possess different needs compared to the adults. However, for the last few decades, laws allowing the transfer of minors into the adult criminal justice system have gained popularity, especially in the US. Currently, there are about 40 states in the US that permit minors who are charged as adults be put in pre-trial in adult jails. A significant number of states in the country also allow minor criminals to be placed in adult jails. It is estimated that about 7,000 minors are held in adult jail in the US. The policy that encourages minors to be tried as adults put thousands of young people at risk due to the difficulty of ensuring their safety in adult jails. Trying minor offenders as an adult should not be allowed because it subjects young people to physical and emotional harm that can interfere with their future development as responsible adults (Lash, 2011).
The increase in the number of minors who engage in serious criminal activities was the beginning of a controversial debate on whether minor offenders should be tried in the adult criminal justice system. Consequently, people started arguing that minors should be held responsible for their crimes and should be tried as adults. As a result, there has been an increase in the transfer laws, policies, and procedures that allow minors to be tried in adult courts. States in the US also started enacting statutes that expand the age of offense to cover young people involved in criminal activities. In addition, there is an increased shift of discretional power of US judges that allow them to transfer young offenders into the adult criminal justice system. Therefore, the need to try minors as an adult started when they started engaging in serious crimes, which led to the formulation of statutes and policies that allow their transfer (Lash, 2011).
Delegate your assignment to our experts and they will do the rest.
The main problem associated with trying minors in the adult criminal justice system is increase psychological torture they are subjected to. According to the recent study that was focusing on the health profiles of minors transferred into the adult criminal justice system, 66% of young people who are jailed in adult prisons have at least one psychological disorder while 43 have more than two mental disorders (UCLA School of Law, 2010). Therefore, trying minors as adults is associated with high level of depression and anxiety that can affect their mental health and leads to other problems such as suicide among young people. Based on the research that was conducted by Michael Flaherty, a research with Community Research Forum in Illinois, minors who are sent to adult jails are 7.7 times more likely to commit suicide than those sent to juvenile detention centers. High level of depression faced by minors in adult prison is the main reason why they commit suicide. Minors who are sent to adult criminal justice system face regular abuses, which drive them to desperation, forcing them to commit suicide. The adult criminal justice system is not designed and equipped to protect minor offenders from emotional risks that can lead to suicide.
Increased number of rapes that are encountered by minors when they are tried through the adult justice system and adult prison is another problem. Minors who are sent to adult prisons are five times more likely to experience sexual attacks or rapes compared to those held in juvenile institutions. Apart from endangering their physical health, rape among minors also come with some consequences that may affect their future lives. Victims of rape are likely to show excessive aggression towards others, especially women and children. At the same time, rape is exposing young offenders to sexually transmitted diseases such as HIV/AIDs. It is, therefore, important for both state and federal government to ensure that no minor is subjected to the adult criminal justice system, particularly being sent to adult prison (Justice Policy Institute, 2001).
In addition, minors who are subjected to adult justice system are likely to commit more crimes. Studies have shown that sending minors to adult courts do not reduce recidivism, but instead increase the rate of crime among young people (UCLA School of Law, 2010). For instance, minor offenders who are tried in adult courts find it hard to cope in the society even after their release. As a result, due to the feeling of isolation and rejection, these young offenders are forced to join gang groups or engage in deviant activities and behaviors. Hence, transferring minors into adult justice system will lead to increased crime among young people.
In conclusion, subjecting minor offenders to the adult system comes with a lot of negative consequences. It leads to psychological problems, health risks, and physical problems such as rape. At the same time, children tried in adult system are likely to engage in more crimes. Therefore, the best solution to the problems is to keep minors out of the adult system. States should come up with laws that make it hard to prosecute or sentence minors as adults. Instead of transferring minor offenders to the adult system, the juvenile system should be made more effective in meeting its goals and objectives.
References
Justice Policy Institute. (2001 ). Risk Juvenile Face when they are Interacting with Adults . Retrieved from http://www.justicepolicy.org/images/upload/97- 02_rep_riskjuvenilesface_jj.pdf
Lash, J. (2011, August 11). The Trouble with Trying Children as Adults. Juvenile Justice Information Exchange . Retrieved from http://jjie.org/2011/08/31/editorial-by-john-lash-on-trying-children-as-adults/
UCLA School of Law (2010, July). The impact of prosecuting youth in the adult criminal justice system. A Review of the Literature . Retrieved from https://www.campaignforyouthjustice.org/documents/UCLA-Literature-Review.pdf
