Death of a Generation

Persuasive Essay # 26638

Child, Youth Issues
Criminology > Juvenile Justice
Hot Topics > Capital Punishment

A discussion of whether or not the death penalty for minors is right or wrong.

1,698 words () | 4 sources | MLA | 2003 United States

Paper Summary:

This paper examines the moral as well as legal issues regarding the sentencing of a minor to death for crimes. It argues how the sentencing of minor to the death penalty is wrong because it undermines the rehabilitation system that is currently in place throughout the United States. It stipulates how all citizens of the world, especially children deserve a chance to turn their lives around rather than have them cut short by a no turning back death sentence and how there are many reason why capital punishment for minors should be re-examined, from the costs of execution to the simple fact that a person does not develop fully until later in his or her teenage years. It looks at some of the underlying factors that cause juvenile crime and the debate of the effectiveness of the death penalty as a deterrent versus the cost of capital punishment. It evaluates other ways to deal with young offenders such as the different probation programs available.

From the Paper:

"It is hard to comprehend the effects of the death penalty on a country, especially on as large as the United States but the reality of the situation is alarming. The facts are that as of 1996 over fifty percent of the prisoners on death row have the educational equivalency of an eleventh grader. This means that fifty percent of inmates on death row have had little or no chance to progress in their home, community, city, state, and country. These death row inmates have no chance to change, learn, or make anything of their lives. They have been sent away to rot in a cell while they awaits their execution and while their minds lay dormant. There have been several cases where minors have been sentenced to death. The Supreme Court has wrestled with this dilemma for a while and found that there are no clear objections from any region of the United States to executing a person as young as sixteen."