Should children (juveniles) who commit murder be executed?

Question

Would you favor reversing the Supreme Court ruling barring the death penalty for capital crimes committed by 16 and 17 year old children? And reversing an earlier decision by the Court barring the execution for crimes committed by children under 16?

Please include reasons for your answers. Thank you

Answer 1

ya. cause manslaughter is one thing but if the kid commits murder it should be the same as any adult. then agian i guess if ur talking about like really young kids u could argue that they r just too stupid to know any better but 16 or 17, they should know better

Answer 2

No.  We don't allow 16 year olds to buy alcohol or cigarettes, to vote or to serve in the armed forces, because we believe they are not mature enough. Actually, when you look at the death penalty system in action, you realize that the only purpose it serves is retribution or revenge and that there is a serious and continuing risk of executing innocent people.

129 people on death rows have been released with proof that they were wrongfully convicted. DNA, available in less than 10% of all homicides, can’t guarantee we won’t execute innocent people.

The death penalty doesn't prevent others from committing murder. No reliable study shows the death penalty deters others. Homicide rates are higher in states and regions that have it than in those that don’t.

Life without parole, on the books in 48 states, also prevents  reoffending. It means what it says, and spending 23 of 24 hours a day locked in a tiny cell is not a picnic. Life without parole costs less than the death penalty.

The death penalty is much more expensive than life in prison, mostly because of the upfront costs of legal process which is supposed to prevent executions of innocent people. (upfront=before and during the initial trial)

The death penalty isn't reserved for the worst crimes, but for defendants with the worst lawyers. It doesn't apply to people with money. When is the last time a wealthy person was on death row, let alone executed?

The death penalty doesn't necessarily help families of murder victims. Murder victim family members have testified that the drawn-out death penalty process is painful for them and that life without parole is an appropriate alternative.

Problems with speeding up the process. Over 50 of the innocent people released from death row had already served over a decade. Speed up the process and we will execute innocent people.

Sources:

Death Penalty Information Center, www.deathpenaltyinfo.org,  for stats on executions, reports on costs, deterrence studies, links to FBI crime stats and links to testimony (at state legislatures) of victims' family members.

FBI   http://www.fbi.gov/ucr/cius2006/data/tab...  

The Innocence Project, www.innocenceproject.org

http://www.deathpenaltyinfo.org/COcostte... page 3 and 4 on why the death penalty is so expensive

http://www.njadp.org/forms/signon-surviv... for statements of victims’ families

Answer 3

Under the assumption that the death penalty is appropriate (which I don't completely agree with as practiced in the US), I think it completely appropriate to apply to older teenagers.  Although they lack some of the judgment that comes with age, they do have the capacity to understand the morality of killing someone.

Answer 4

I am not in favor of anyone being executed. But I also think that it is a mistake to release any man, ever, if he has committed  a murder.

I think that a significant number of people are in favor of the death penalty only because they think that the state would eventually release a convicted murderer back into the population if the death penalty were abolished.

Making a lighter punishment for juveniles could also work against juveniles, as criminal gangs might then be encouraged to put the gun in the hands of a juvenile member.

Answer 5

I don't agree with the death penalty full stop.

But if it was applicable then I would make children exempt.

Reason - it's just wrong and two wrongs don't make a right.

Answer 6

Since murder implies premeditation, and 16-17 year olds know right from wrong, and since most murders are drug related, I see no reason why "juveniles" can't be executed other than the waste of human life.

Every case has its reasons and many people do later regret their actions.  Those people should be spared death.  But for the other cold-blooded gang busters, no mercy should be given.

Answer 7

Personally, I believe that the death penalty is wrong in ANY case.  And giving someone the death penalty is too nice.  ...Murderers should be sentenced to life in prison so they have time to think about the evil they committed.  I would rather die than to have to spend the rest of life in a prison.  ...Death penalty is wrong.