Reading reflection juvies - Essay Example

One such advantage is that a jury takes the responsibility of administering justice to the minor. This is advantageous to the juveniles because the process will promote transparency during the trial. Members of a jury can be sympathetic to juveniles, leading to acquittals, or lighter punishments. However, the disadvantages outweigh the advantages of transferring the juveniles to an adult court system. In an adult court, chances are high that juveniles will get a harsher punishment, in comparison to the punishment they would get in a juvenile court.

This is because an adult court treats them as adults; therefore, they qualify to receive the same punishments an adult will receive in the given trial. These children will suffer from stigma which emanates from a trial and a conviction under an adult court. The effect is that their self-esteem becomes low, leading to lack of confidence and self-worthiness. Marcovitz (2012) denotes that trial under an adult court exposes the crimes of these children, and this further leads to erosion of their confidence.

Basing on these arguments, it is not good or ethical for a minor to be subjected to an adult court process. This will make them to be socially vulnerable, and impossible to reform them. They will suffer stigma, and their self-esteem will be undermined. At the adult prisons, these children will be vulnerable to manipulations by adult offenders. They will learn new ways of crime, coming out of the system as criminals, instead of rehabilitated offenders. However, some people would disagree with my opinion.

Marcovitz (2012) denotes that a juvenile who commits a serious offense such as murder and homicide, should be treated as an adult. This will have an effect of deterring minor offenders from committing such kind of crimes. However, this argument is baseless because these offenders are always ignorant on issues that deal with law. Marcovitz (2012) denotes that children as young as 13 years who commit serious crimes should be transferred to an adult court. However, in my own opinion, this age bracket is too low, because their minds are not yet fully developed to understand the justice system.

This is also their age of adolescence; thus, they are vulnerable to act in ways that the society does not accept. On this note, should a waiver occur, the best age is 16 years. This is because at this age, the child is above the juvenile rehabilitation system and he can sustain the pressures that are characterized by a trial at an adult court. Marcovitz (2012) denotes that crimes commited by juveniles that ought to be taken to an adult court are murder, homicide cases, rape, carjacking, robbery with violence and criminal gang intimidations.

Marcovitz (2012) denotes that during this process, there are two people who can determine whether a minor should be transferred to an adult court for trial. These are the prosecutor and the juvenile judge. A prosecutor can apply for waiver from the courts, but the judge after looking at the evidence presented, and the background of the child, he can decide to transfer the case to an adult court, or retain it at the juvenile court. These transfers should not be automatic upon application by the prosecutor, because prosecutors can miss out on important factors that made the child to commit such kind of a crime because of his interest in the case.

On this note, an independent person is required to make the decision, and this person is the