Juveniles: Too Young To Die?

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penalty comes from those wanting
restitution for the death of a loved one. It is the thought that a life is the
ultimate price to pay which fuels this argument. The delineation between adults
and juveniles is much less clear on this point. Age doesn't seem to make much of
a difference when dealing with restitution. Putting an individual to death seems
to put the minds of certain individuals at ease. This argument is what makes
that 9% seem to be the vast majority.

The distinction between juveniles and adults is a very important one.
It is often a deciding factor when one is choosing to support the death penalty
or not. Although the difference often consists of just a few short years, it is
those years which make all the difference. Often its deterrent effect and costs
are greatly affected by age and maturity. In fact, most theories and reasons for
supporting the death penalty are flawed when applying them to juveniles.

The debate over whether or not the death penalty is an ...

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next deals with the lack of maturity that most juveniles show. Every
juvenile is dealing with enormous amounts of stress everyday. It is these
pressures that affect the deterrent effect of the juvenile death penalty. Each
juvenile deals with this stress in a different way, however, because of this
stress, many adolescents act impulsively at times. Henry Heft explains that

"Peer pressure and family environment subject adolescents to enormous
psychological and emotional stress. Adolescents respond to stressful
situations by acting impulsively and without the mature judgments
expected
from adults. These characteristics are shared by ...

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