Category: Let's talk
This week a 12 year old girl escaped a custodial sentence for attempting to hang a 5 year old boy from a tree. Instead she was given a 12 month referral order. This means that she will be supervised by youth and social workers, in order that she can be rehabilitated. Her family will also receive some support and guidance during this time. The family of the victim are outraged, and feel that she has not been punished severely enough for her crime. However the judge said that he thought she would be more likely to be rehabilitated under supervision than if she was sent to a young offenders institution.
So many people feel that children should be treated the same as adults, and that when they commit a crime, the punishments should be equal to those of an adult, but is it not true that young minds are more easily shaped than those of adults? Should we not give children the chance to be rehabilitated even if they have committed the most severe crimes? Or should we just let them go to jail where they can potentially learn to commit more crimes, and therefore take away any chance of them turning their lives around and growing up to become reformed and honest citizens. Do you think once a criminal always a criminal? Or do you think that people can change, and do you think they should be given a chance to do so.
Well, I think for a child, he or she couldn't have just committed a crime for no reason. I mean, they might say they just did it because they felt like it or something, but there has to be something behind it, whether it's psychiatric problems or problems at home or whatever. So yes, I think she should be rehabilitated. If there was some kind of problem, she could have someone trusted to talk to and there could be something done to help her get her life together. But if she were to be just put into a juvenile detention thing, it might make her worse or at least angry at others. For an adult, it's hard to tell. By then, they should know the difference between right and wrong and that making the wrong decisions will lead to jail time, a fine, or whatever. They should also know that there are people and places available to help them if they needed it, if not in their area then elsewhere. The only exception of course is if they were seriously found to have serious emotional problem or a serious psychiatric disorder. Then they could be rehabilitated.
Lweilani
I'm with Leilani on this one, however, I definitely say it depends on the child, and how remorseful he or she is of the crime. Some kids need a doce of reality therapy in order to straighten up. Maybe a combination of counselling, and cold hard reality would help, but I do agree that children's minds are more easily sculpted.
I think first we need to define the intended outcome of the punishment, for anyone, not just a child .. but in the child's case it's even more important. I think the family of the victim is very beant on revenge and making sure that the offender pays or suffers for what he/she did. I think it's natural reaction but I don't think for soiety as a whole that's a very good attitude to have. If all we did was to always pay in kind our social structure would soon go up in flames. So assuming what we really want is to do our best to turn those who commit crimes into decent people and active members of society, then we have the question of how best to do so. I think it depends on the individual and I think it's very hard to put a blanket technique or rules that apply for all offenders, however our system is largely based on such rules and we must have a standard by which we judge the crime. The standards are based on the crime, not on the person committing the crime so I think there will always be dispute about how to deal with cases. The judges have some liberty within the framework of the law I suppose to taylor the punishment to the offender and what the judge perceives the offender's needs are but I think over all it's very hard to know what, if anything, we can do to turn some people from their ways and I don't think we can really make any blanket statements on how such crimes should be punished. It depends on personality, reasons, motives etc.
cheers
-B
I agree with wildebrew, perfect example is leapold and lobe, the two rich teenagers who killed a 14 year old boy in the 1920's. They both got life sentences instead of death. One was killed in prison, the other was released, got married, became a teacher, and was a law abiding sitizen. So you know never know how someone will turn out.
but we live in this society that says that we need to punish the criminals in line with the crimes they have committed. the type of society that has to provide new identities to imfamous killers because of what will happen to them when they get out of jail.
i don't really know what i'd do! i think it's horrid that a girl would even do that?
sb, just tells you what people are really like, we are mean vindictive and unforgiving, over-all, fortunately there are exceptions, but I think sadly this really olds true for a lot of people. Of course the risk law makers are also running is to let someone lose who will be a danger to others, the other part of the law and legal punishment is to try and keep those who are a thraet to others separate to make our societies safer to live in. I think we tend to ere on the side of caution perhaps at the cost of giving those people a chance, naturally so and perhaps that is well "just" in a way, I don't know but it doesn't seem like a very forgiving attitude to me. I"m not saying I'd react any different from the victim's family mind you I'd probably say exactly the same things or get mad enough to harm the girl with my own hands, I'd like to think of myself as more tolerant and understanding but if you discovered your kid had been hanged and you knew who committed the crime, wouldn't at least a tiny part of you just urge you to go there and take revenge?
Cheers
-B
For the cretins who deliberately arm themselves with knives, machetes, swords {I kid you not} and guns, and no this is not NY, it's Glasgow. I say let them rot in the worst and most overcrowded jail, then throw the keys in the river. When they chose to stab their victim it was not intended as a warning, but to kill or disable for life. These mindless thugs are better off out of society, as they have nothing but contempt for those who wish to get on with their lives in peace.