Criminal law: Treating a child as an adult

Criminal law: Treating a child as an adult A 15 year old commits a crime, depending on the seriousness of the crime, that child should be treated as an adult. Children in the past have been given many but not all of the due process protection that is recognized in adult criminal courts, so why cant children be treated as adults if they get certain advantages that adults get. Juvenile courts have many of the same rights as adults such as the right to a hearing. Juvenile offenders are typically treated as a special group. The courts soon realized that children could commit serious offenses therefore the juvenile courts created a procedure to transfer the case to the adult criminal courts. Nearly all states have provisions where if a juvenile who commits a serious felony can be prosecuted as an adult. This provision is called â€Å"concurrent jurisdiction† where the prosecutor can decide if the case will be moved to the adult courts. Statutory exclusion means that the legislature can require that certain serious crimes that involve juveniles can be tried in the adult court system instead of leaving it up to the prosecutor or the judge to decide how the case will be taken care of. In 1994 at least 13 states required that certain juvenile cases should be handled by the criminal courts. The case of the sniper shootings in the Washington D. C. area involved Lee Boyd Malvo who was 17 at the time of the shootings. Malvo was tried as an adult for capital murder and was sentenced to life without parole. One percent of juvenile cases are waved to the adult criminal court each year. Juvenile crimes lead to more serious crimes. Therefore the juveniles need to be stopped by being treated as adults and getting worse punishments than they would if treated as a juvenile. Both Bill Clinton and Robert Dole urged that juveniles charged with violent crimes be tried as adults, removing them from the protective confines of juvenile court proceedings. Courts are going back and looking at court cases that involved juveniles getting sentenced to life without parole. In 2009 the Supreme Court looked at two crimes (Graham and Sullivan) involving juveniles that committed crimes that should not have sentenced them to life without parole. They will be deciding whether life without parole sentences for juveniles is unconstitutionally harsh. Florida is one of six states to charge juveniles for non-homicide crimes. â€Å"An estimated 2,570 juvenile defendants in the United States are serving life without parole sentences, nearly all are homicide related. Of the 111 juvenile defendants who committed lesser offences such as Graham and Sullivan, 77 of them are in Florida p risons† (USA Today, Nov. 10, 2009). The Supreme Court ruled that sentencing a juvenile to life without parole for a non- homicide crime is unconstitutional. There was a 5-4 decision on this ruling. Justice Kennedy states in his majority opinion â€Å"Gives all juvenile non-homicide offenders a chance to demonstrate maturity and reform. The juvenile should not be deprived of the opportunity to achieve maturity of judgment and self-recognition of human worth and potential† (EJI). In 2010, a state judge in Michigan sentenced life without parole to Dakotah Eliason who was convicted of murdering his step grandfather. Dakotah was 14 at the time of the murder. The defense said this sentence was cruel and unusual punishment and violated the 8th Amendment. â€Å"Long-standing and unchallenged precedent establishes that when a juvenile is convicted of killing another human being, a life-without-parole sentence does not violate the Eighth Amendment,† says Judge Scott Schofi eld who was the judge in the Eliason case (WBST.com, October 25, 2010). An article dated May 1995 states that the public is alarmed by the increasing number of juvenile violence. Between 1982 and 1992 arrest for juvenile violence doubled. If people were afraid of the increase in juvenile violence in 1982 and 1992 then what does that have to say for the violence now. Juvenile violence may not be as high as it was in the late 1900s, thats most likely because in the late 1900s security wasnt as serious as it is now. Juveniles in the late 1900s had a better chance of getting something that they should not have in their possession than in 2011. In 1987-1993 politicians started using the phrase â€Å"adult crime, adult time.† A May 2010 article mentions that juveniles cannot be sentenced to life in prison without committing non- homicide crimes. Attorneys explain that juveniles cannot be convicted of a crime that they cannot control because their frontal lobe has not fully developed. The frontal lobe is responsible for reasoning, impulse control, and planning. A study was done at the New York University School of Medicine that shows that the frontal lobe is one of the last areas to reach maturity. It matures around age 20 or beyond. The 26th Amendment changed the voting age from 21 to 18, therefore most states lowered the age of adulthood to 18. Juvenile courts were designed to save children from the damage that could be caused by holding them with adult offenders. Studies show that transferring juveniles to adult courts is not an effective deterrent of further criminal activity. In 2005, the Supreme Court banned use of the death penalty against minors in all cases. In 2009 the Just Kids Partnership found that the adult court system teaches teens to become violent criminals, subject them to sexual and physical abuse and waste taxpayers money. Problems at home could have contributed to the child committing the crime therefore the courts should look into the juveniles family background. Studies show that juveniles who are tried as adults are more likely to commit another crime than those tried in the juvenile court system. This means that it is more effective to prosecute all juveniles in the juvenile court system. The government should treat children as adults depending on how serious the crime is. Example: if a 14 year old murdered someone and it was not self defense then yes the child should be treated as an adult. Lock up only the most serious and most violent offenders. Kids that commit crimes such as murder or terrorism should be tried as adults not kids that are property or drug offenders. If children want to try to be grown up or are trying to grow up to fast then they should be treated like an adult if they want to act like an adult, like the phrase says â€Å"adult crime, adult time†. The only reason why a child should not be treated as an adult is if the crime is not serious enough or if the child has family or school problems or psychological problems then the courts would have to take a whole other approach. If people are concerned that teens being sent to jail with adults is critical to their health then the Government could build a building for teens that get tried as an a dult and sentenced to jail time. Even though this will use tax money, it is better than putting kids into a jail that may not suit them. Also the kids will get more attention and learn to make better decisions if they ever get out of jail. This building will serve the purpose of the juvenile courts for those juveniles that committed serious crimes which is to rehabilitate, not only punish which is what the adult courts are used for. Since courts are now going back and looking at court cases where juveniles were sentenced to life without parole this means they will be letting some convicts out on good behavior or put them in the right facilities. These convicts that the courts are letting out are not murders but they still committed a crime. That is just like letting a 45 year old out for good behavior when he assaulted someone when he was 34. America is suppose to be a safe place, but if we have murders getting let out of jail and roaming the street who knows if they will strike aga in even if they were convicted when they were a juvenile. If the frontal lobe does not mature until into young adult hood than the Government should raise the age of juvenile court jurisdiction till the age of when the frontal lobe is scientifically proven to be fully developed. So then courts can be sure that the convicted persons brain was fully developed and they were fully aware of what was happening and what the consequences should be. The Government should also construct a document that says that you will still be considered a juvenile if you are under the age of 18, but if you commit certain serious crimes while under the age of 18 you will be treated as an adult. Most criminal activity happens after school hours and on weekends in the evening. Schools could help with the crime rate by offering more school activities that do not cost money to be in or are offered for a low cost. Then students would be less likely to commit a crime especially if they are an officer of a club or on a team that they represent in and outside of school. There are pros and cons to whether or not a child should be treated as an adult but if we do not stop the crime rate in children than the crime rate in adults is going to rise because once those children get older their crimes will most likely develop into more serious crimes. Juveniles are â€Å"different† than adults. Juveniles are not as mature as adults both physically and mentally but that does not mean they should not suffer the same consequences as adults. People always say children are the future but if we do not welcome them to the real world and make them realize that the decisions and actions they make have consequences than they will have no future and will not be able to make it through life.

Adult Literacy Education: Emerging Directions in Program Development :: Adult Learning Educate School Essays

Adult Literacy Education: Emerging Directions in Program Development The one-size-fits-all programming for [adult literacy students] that has predominated in the past should not and indeed cannot continue in the future if practitioners are to be responsive to learners' needs. Rather, practitioners must meaningfully assist adults in learning to read not only the word but their world. (Sissel 1996, p. 97). "Why don't more adults take advantage of available opportunities to improve their basic skills?" is one of the more perplexing questions confronting the field of adult basic and literacy education. Only 8 percent of eligible adults participate in funded literacy programs and, of those who do, most (74 percent) leave during the first year (Quigley 1997). "What other area of education could live with such figures?" asks Quigley (ibid., p. 8). A large number of adults with low literacy simply choose not to participate in available programs, and they are sometimes referred to as nonparticipants or resisters. The reasons these adults do not see literacy education as a viable alternative are complex but recent research has focused on the connection to previous school experiences (Velazquez 1996). Many adults equate literacy education with school, and, even though they have positive attitudes about learning and education, they choose not to participate in adult basic and literacy education programs (Quigley 1997; Velazquez 1996; Ziegahn 1992). Since most adult literacy education programs still resemble school (Quigley 1997; Velazquez 1996), adult literacy educators must begin to change how programs are structured and delivered if they are going to attract nonparticipants. Fortunately, a growing number of practitioners, researchers, and policy makers in the field of adult literacy education are dissatisfied with the status quo and are proposing changes based on research and practice. This Digest presents emerging perspectives about adult literacy program development. First, it reviews current ideas about the relationship between learners and program development and then presents recommendations for program development based on the literature. Program Development: Listening to Learners' Voices How can literacy programs become less like school and more appealing to adults, especially to nonparticipants? Two areas that hold potential for answering this question are discussed here. The first is connected to program content and the second revolves around greater consideration of the differences among students. Beyond Reading and Writing Literacy education must be conceptualized as more than reading and writing (Auerbach et al. 1996). According to Fingeret (1992), "our understanding of literacy has changed from [a] focus on individual skills, separated from meaningful content .

Do you think that cities can ever become sustainable?

In relation to cities, sustainability refers to development that lets the people living now get the things they need but without reducing the ability of people in the future to get what they need i. e. growth in a way that doesn't irreversibly damage the environment or use up resources faster than can be replaced. For example, an urban area that is growing by generating all its power from finite sources will exhaust its supply and could accelerate climate change. Megacities require so many resources that it is unlikely they will ever develop in a truly sustainable way, but there are things that can be done to make them develop in a way that is more sustainable. In order for urban areas to become more sustainable the key issues that need to be tackled are overcrowding, transport problems, crime and pollution. Exploring sustainability projects at different points along the urbanisation pathway in cities such as Shanghai (LEDC), Putrajaya (NIC), Chattanooga and London (MEDC) will give an insight as to whether city sustainability is more likely to be achieved in MEDCs or LEDCs. Whilst MEDCs may have the necessary resources and technology to make an impact on becoming more sustainable, their starting point is a much bigger ecological footprint. Therefore, there may be more potential in LEDCs becoming sustainable as they have a more appropriate use of intermediate technology. Shanghai, at the heart of China's economic surge, has realised that a key aspect of sustainability is transport. Their major challenge was to reduce energy demands and greenhouse gas emissions but at the same time maintain mobility within the city. The city developed an eco-friendly transport system which includes a network of 11 metro lines at a total of 325km which is integrated with a bus based mass transit system, reducing the need for people to use personal cars. A railway link to the new international airport, which involves the world's first commercial magnetic levitation trains capable of reaching 550kmh reducing travel time and greenhouse gas emissions, has been built. A reduction in the number of cars on the roads has occurred due to increasing licensing fees and restricted access to the city centre, whilst the electronic guidance system helps avoid congestion and keeps road traffic flowing. Whilst it is common for cities to encourage people to cycle by introducing cycle lanes, the 9 million cyclists in Shanghai may soon face a ban from major roads as the authorities struggle to control congestion and reduce the rising car ownership of the middle classes proving that their attempts to become more sustainable are failing. Furthering the transport systems, Shanghai is planning to create a new city designed to be completely sustainable, it will be called Dongtan and will be the size of Manhattan. It was to have been built on Chongming Island, near Shanghai, in the Yangtze River Delta. The first phase, comprising a city of 25,000 people, was due to have opened for the Shanghai Expo in 2010. By 2030 it was intended to house 500,000 residents. However no construction of the eco-city has taken place yet, so the project has fallen much behind schedule. It is claimed to be the world's first genuinely eco-friendly city powered by renewable energy sources (mainly HEP) and will be as close to carbon neutral as possible. However the waters are rich in aquatic life and it is an important feeding ground for migrating wetland birds, the construction of this city may cause a loss in habitats and safe resting places for the birds causing a loss in species diversity making this eco-friendly city not as sustainable as was hoped. Malaysia has become one of the many countries that have deliberately created a new capital city. In 1995 it was decided that the national government function should be moved from Kuala Lumpur, which remains the country's financial and commercial centre, to a greenfield site 25km south of the city. Putrajaya has a population of 67 964, and is located within a high tech zone 15km wide and 50km long known as the Multimedia Super Corridor (MSC), Malaysia's ‘silicone valley' stretching southwards from the centre of KL and includes KL international airport, Putrajaya and Cyberjaya (a ‘smart' city specialising in education, research and high tech business). The spine of the MSC is an electronic superhighway (fibre optic network) that provides high speed computer links. A large lake is being created, surrounding an artificial island, which will play an important role in flood and pollution control, an environmental benefit, as well as providing recreational and aesthetic value. 40% of the 500 hectare site will be left as green space in an attempt to counteract any greenhouse gases emitted. The main five precincts will be situated in the core and will contain offices, banks, shopping centres and sports complexes. The peripheral area will contain residential neighbourhoods with housing for all incomes, with community centres, parks, places of worship, schools, hospitals and other amenities. There will only be a small amount of housing available for those on low incomes which means there will be a degree of exclusion as the city will be mostly enjoyed by the affluent. The city aims to be indigenous with a modern look, based on new town ventures in the US and UK, with the running efficiency allowing a relatively low rate of consumption of natural resources. However, the environmental impacts will be considerable as the construction and development of the city will involve utilising and modifying a Greenfield site. Nevertheless, high levels of recycling and better flood and pollution control will have positive effects on the environment. Cities in the MEDW will have a hard time ever becoming truly sustainable as they use vast amounts of energy to power the technology used every day. Chattanooga in Tennessee is a classic example of how a city can become more sustainable. In 1969 the US Environmental Agency named Chattanooga as the ‘dirtiest city in America', just over 21 years later it was applauded as the nation's best ‘turn around story'. Credit for the re-imaging of the city has to go to the partnership between the city authority and the Lyndhurst Foundation (sponsored by coca-cola) as well as many individuals. It has tackled issues such as building affordable housing, providing public education and alternative transport systems, conserving natural parks and green areas to help reduce the ecological footprint, reducing pollution and improving recycling facilities and development of the riverfront. Top down strategies such as the Clean Air Act which forces manufacturers to invest heavily in pollution-control equipment, and bottom up measures e. g. Vision 2000 programme which calls for all citizens to visualise the city as they would like it to become, from the responses an agenda evolved resulting in major developments. 10km of waterfront along the Tennessee River was redesigned into an urban park cutting through the heart of the city, made up of playgrounds, spaces for outdoor performances, fishing piers and shaded walkways, transforming the once rundown downtown area. The Tennessee aquarium has attracted many visitors, encouraging the development of the old warehouses surrounding it into shopping malls, restaurants and apartments. Transport has been improved to be more sustainable, by means of an electric shuttle bus service capable of moving a third of downtown commuters at a tenth of the cost of diesel vehicles. It is claimed to be the electric bus capital of the world, with the city manufacturing 22 seater buses that are marketed all over the world. Over 3000 inner city housing units have been renovated, and a zero emissions eco industrial park and a grass roofed convention centre have also been constructed. The sustainability of the city has been enhanced especially in terms of outputs. The environment has benefited greatly from the substantially reduced industrial and vehicle emissions as well as increased green space leading to a decrease in the ecological footprint. Residents have benefited from renovations of the housing and the downtown are. I believe that whilst these urban areas and many others are attempting to become more sustainable, there is still much more that can be done to improve sustainability. For example, housing can be built to be carbon neutral by using solar panels and insulation to reduce the ecological footprint. Public transport could be improved further to produce little or no harmful gases, such as London buses which run on Hydrogen. Renewable energy sources should be used more such as LA uses HEP from Hoover Dam, and whilst renewable energy sources will never generate enough power to support large cities, they should definitely be used more by cities that have large ecological footprints. I feel that as we are so dependent on technology in today's society, cities will never truly become sustainable.

Vocabulary Strategies For Teachers And Parents - 5588 Words

Vocabulary is one of the core components of reading instruction that is essential to successfully teaching children how to read. Vocabulary knowledge is important because it encompasses all the words we must know to access our background knowledge, express our ideas, communicate effectively, and learn about new concepts. Vocabulary is the glue that holds stories, ideas and content together, making comprehension possible for children. A student’s word knowledge is linked strongly to academic success because students who have strong vocabularies can understand new ideas and concepts more quickly than students with limited vocabularies (Hart Risley, 2003). The correlation between word knowledge with reading comprehension indicates that if students are not steadily expanding their vocabulary and reading comprehension, the student’s motivation to want to read will be affected. 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