In response to an article on Deep In The Heart Of Texas supporting the trial of 17 year olds as adults:
Tipping my hat, I shall say that I am very critical of our Nation's Justice system in general, with a particular vehemence for our system of incarceration. As a country, we imprison more of our own people than any other . Many of the crimes these prisoners are convicted of are victimless crimes. While I fully support holding people accountable for their actions, I do not think unproductive punishment is always the best approach. It seems to me, that rehabilitation through social/personal support are what changes peoples lives regardless of their age. Specifically with minors, their brains are not finished developing. If we throw these young people in with other, more veteran criminals, we run the risk of solidifying their future as inmates in our prisons. We have the option, if we're willing to do the one-on-one, interpersonal work, to support offenders in such a way as to reform them into contributing members of society. In fact the $383 difference in the price per day for Prison and Juvenile detention helps to fund such programs. Obviously there are certain criminal acts (murder, sexual assault come immediately to mind) that might require more than just some counseling and support, but these cases could be looked at by Judicial authorities on a case-to-case basis. In a country this big, and in a State that is so big on Rule of Law as Texas its unsurprising, and even commendable that we chase after delinquency (adult or juvenile) so whole-heartedly. But we need to then approach the delinquent themselves in the same way, with our whole hearts.
"There, but for the Grace of God, go I"
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