Board 8 > If a 17 y/o did a CRIME just BEFORE his B-DAY, Should he be tried as a MINOR????

(+) Yeah! (+)

Suppose a 17 y/o kid committed a crime just before they were about to turn 18 and technically since they're still 17, they would be tried into the juvenile justice system..but suppose they were about a week away or even a few days away to turning 18, would that change your mind whether they should be tried as a minor still or is it close enough it should be an adult sentence?...

you'd be surprised at what people think

https://i.imgur.com/4mVDHM6.jpg
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It really just depends on a couple things.

How serious of a crime?
Was it premeditated?

Honestly, even if it was past their birthday, I'd kind of expect that a 17 year old or 18 year old get similar treatments in court for the same crime. 18 year olds aren't magically more mature than 17 year olds, and I'd even argue before 22, young adults are prone to stupid decisions that would lead to criminal activity, especially in regards to activity that was attributed to peer pressure.

The above is of course in defense of small crime, like assault, burglary, or breaking and entering. Something more serious, like murder, requires a full investigation of motive and psychological evaluation, but despite the outcome would require them to be monitored their entire life.

In short, there is no simple answer to your question. Just like raising children, you don't treat them all equal, you give them individual responsibilities based on their maturity progression.

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You have to draw lines somewhere or they won't be implemented consistently

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Why is the line 18 if a week before 18 should count as 18? Why shouldn't 2 weeks before 18 count then also? Etc etc ad nauseum.

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He should be tried as a minor, but our laws should be reworked to provide more of a sliding scale of responsibility. A 17-year old is more culpable than a 15-year-old who is more culpable than a 12-year-old. And, an 18-year-old should be less culpable than a 25-year-old.

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Now here's a hypothetical. Someone is born on X day at 11:59 p.m. and he commits a crime on his 18th birthday at, say, 12:01 a.m. (so he is only 17 years 364 days and 2 minutes old when he commits his crime). Should he be charged as an adult?

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I think that could on where his birthday falls in the leap year cycle. He might have already gone through an extra day before losing portions of a day gradually.

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What about a 20 year old goes into a casino on the eve of his 21st birthday and wins big, but cashes out after midnight. Should he keep the money?

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BakusaiTenketsu posted...

What about a 20 year old goes into a casino on the eve of his 21st birthday and wins big, but cashes out after midnight. Should he keep the money?

Depends. Would the casino refund his money if he had lost?

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