Execution of minors

[Jeslek]

http://www.msnbc.com/news/823862.asp?0dm=N19NN

The Supreme Court, which recently abolished executions for the mentally retarded, was bitterly divided Monday in refusing to consider also ending the execution of killers who were under 18 when they committed their crimes.

Personally, I support it. If you are old enough to commit a violent crime, you are old enough to be put to sleep. Permanently. People must take responsibility for their actions and stop hiding behind "mentally retard", "psychologically deficient", and "was a minor" excuses.

Now if you are under 12 and kill someone in cold blood, I really don't know. Any thoughts?

 

[Luis G]

i'm against execution.

 

[MitchSchaft]

depends

 

[freako104]

i chose the third one as i feel it should be thought of in a case by case basis. as LL said if your old enough to know its a crime then you should be allowed to be executed. but if your not then im somewhat against it in that you dont have the mental capacity to know its a crime or that you hurt someone.

 

[RD_151]

I voted yes, but only because I didn't want to be lumped in with the "no opinion" vote. I think i depends on the case, the motive, the level of planning, the level of intent, and on the mitigating circumstances.

 

[Scanty]

against execution regardless of age

 

[whoreable]

weird...i agree

 

[fury]

If all the lazy ass parents would start taking the responsibility of raising their children rather than turning them into mindless drones that sit glued to the TV so they don't have to watch them, then this wouldn't even be an issue.

They let their kids get influenced by TV, their friends, and their enemies, with no objective person to pay attention or to teach them the line between fantasy and reality, and then their kid suddenly murders someone and they wonder where they went wrong.

I say we execute parents of kids that make debates like this have to go on, and then put the kid up for adoption into a real family

 

[Shadowfax]

i agree, but it's a case to case thing for sure...

 

[Gaunt]

I would say that it depends on the age of the person commiting the crime and what exactly the crime was.

 

[Ardsgaine]

You should've had a fourth option:

d.) Seriously thinking about it.

This boy needs to start napping longer so he can make it bedtime without melting down on me. Sheesh!!

 

[Gonz]

I'm against the government having the authority to kill people, even criminals. That was not the point behind the question so I answered depends. I would take many more factors to execute a minor. They should know right from wrong, granted. However, kids do not have the mental capacities & accumen of adults. There is a physically different way for the brain to process info. A 17 year old is a whole lot easier to understand than a 14 year old.

 

[freako104]

If all the lazy ass parents would start taking the responsibility of raising their children rather than turning them into mindless drones that sit glued to the TV so they don't have to watch them, then this wouldn't even be an issue.

They let their kids get influenced by TV, their friends, and their enemies, with no objective person to pay attention or to teach them the line between fantasy and reality, and then their kid suddenly murders someone and they wonder where they went wrong.

I say we execute parents of kids that make debates like this have to go on, and then put the kid up for adoption into a real family

damn right

 

[Jeslek]

I'm against the government having the authority to kill people, even criminals. That was not the point behind the question so I answered depends. I would take many more factors to execute a minor. They should know right from wrong, granted. However, kids do not have the mental capacities & accumen of adults. There is a physically different way for the brain to process info. A 17 year old is a whole lot easier to understand than a 14 year old.

If you don't want the government to kill people, at least give the prosecutor the right to. If I know someone killed a friend or family, I'd much prefer to shoot him myself than letting the government do it. But thats not the point I am unsure of what I think when it comes to crimes comitted by a minor under the age of 14. From 15 and upwards I think they are smart enough to know what they do. Even at 14 some kids are way smarter than the average and comprehend what they are doing.

I guess it is on a case to case basis, but I'd definitely support it.

 

[freako104]

hey gonz i remember you mentioning that on jjr512 but what about vigilantism? are you for that?

 

[Gonz]

of course not freak. we have a judicial system, with limitations, for a reason.

 

[freako104]

there are limitations to it so that people have rights but should the criminal?? fuck no!! ask a victim if they had a right when they were victimised. thats why i love our justice system so much.

 

[Hiflyr]

Depends on what happened.

 

[Gonz]

study your history & see what happens to some criminals. government needs to have clear definitions & limits.

 

[Luis G]

talking about young criminals, does anybody knows what happened to those 2 kids in England that killed nother kid by tied him to the rail road?