Young People Who Commit Serious Crimes Should Be Punished In The Same Way As Adults
Sample essay
According to some people juveniles who commit serious offences should receive the same punishment that adults get for similar crimes. I fully agree with this view because a crime is a crime regardless of whether it is committed by a teenager or an adult.
Juveniles who commit heinous crimes like murder and rape should be treated like adults. To start with, a child is not capable of committing a crime like rape or smuggling. So, if a teenager commits this crime, it is safe to assume that they have the same level of mental maturity as adults. In this case, letting them off simply because they are still a minor sends the wrong message to the society and this encourages more teenagers to offend. If we consider crime statistics across the world, it is easy to see that juvenile crime is on the rise. One of the most important reasons for this rise in crime is that many countries have very lenient laws for treating juvenile offenders. In India, for example, someone who hadn’t turned eighteen at the time they committed the crime cannot receive harsh punishments. Consequently, it is quite common to hear reports of teens committing crimes like rape or drug trafficking.
On the other hand, if teenage criminals are treated like adults and given exemplary punishment, it will deter many potential offenders from taking the same path. One of the main reasons that prompt young people to commit crimes is that they know they will be treated with kid gloves and let off. Unfortunately, this practice of giving them lighter punishments encourages more adolescents to commit crimes. Many of them eventually become hardened criminals and pose a real threat to the society. Obviously, the only viable solution to check juvenile crime is to give them adult punishment.
In conclusion, teenager offenders should not be given light punishments just because they are a minor before the law. Punishment must always be proportionate to the gravity of the crime and the age of the offender should never be a consideration.
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