Notes on "Kids In Prison: Tried As Adults, They Find Trouble Instead of Help and Rehabilitation"

Greene, Ronnie, and Geoff Dougherty. "Kids in Prison: Tried As Adults, They Find Trouble Instead..." Miami Herald (Miami, FL). 18 Mar 2001: 1A+. SIRS Researcher. Web. 26 Sep 2010.

• Throughout the United States, it is becoming easier to send juvenile offenders to adult prison, mainly because they are being tried in adult court. (1)
• In states such as Florida, juveniles as young as 14 are sentenced to time in adult prisons for non- violent crimes, which include theft, burglaries, and drug charges. (1)
• "But for Florida's fight against teen crime, the studies carry significance. Each of them matched children in the two systems--adult court and juvenile court--by their current charges, prior records and key demographics: in other words, similar youngsters, charged with similar crimes and with similar criminal pasts, routed to different systems." (2)
• It can be concluded that children who are sent to a juvenile detention center, with programs specially designed for the juvenile demographic of criminals, are better off than those children who are simply sentenced to time, or life, in the adult prison system. (2)
• Based on a study from the 1980s, thirty percent of juveniles broke the law again after their release from adult prison, while only 19 percent of juveniles broke the law after their release from the juvenile system. (7)
• If state legislatures are making it easier for the criminal justice system to send juveniles to adult prison, these percentages will continue to rise with time. (7)

• Judges were once able to put juveniles in rehabilitation programs, but send them to adult prison if they failed to complete the program. (7)

• This is called "blended sentencing," which is no longer allowed in the criminal justice system.  A judge must either try a teen criminal as a juvenile or as an adult. (7)

• In Florida,  courthouses are pushing for this type of sentencing to be brought back. (8)

• If this option was restored, it could give teen criminals a chance to take part in a rehabilitation program; however, the consequences would still stand if they failed to complete the program.  (8)
• Other juvenile rehabilitation opportunities include after-school programs, camps, therapy, etc.  Being locked away in a juvenile detention center is the most intensive method. (8)

• "The Department of Juvenile Justice's proposed budget cuts millions for early prevention programs targeting at-risk youths across Florida.  Cuts would hit truancy reduction and gang prevention programs, juvenile camps and after-school education programs, along with day treatment and therapy centers." (8)

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Notes on "Adult Prisons Harden Teens"

Villa, Judi. "Adult Prisons Harden Teens." Arizona Republic (Phoenix, AZ). Nov. 14 2004: A1+. SIRS Researcher. Web. 22 Sep 2010.

• Statistics show that one in four juvenile criminals, who are sent to an adult prison, will commit a violent crime once they are released. (1)

• "They grow up in cages in a culture of violence and racial segregation and can be isolated in lockdown 23 hours a day for months at a time.  Anti-social behaviors become their norm." (1)
• Many states, such as Arizona, have passed legislation making it easier for the justice system to punish juvenile criminals through adult prisons.  (2)
• This law, referred to as Proposition 102, has sent more than 1300 juvenile criminals to prison. (3)
• Programs to help juveniles in prison are scarce and underfunded, as juveniles make up only 0.5 percent of the total prison population.  (4)

• In Arizona, juveniles in prison take part in programs that teach skills such as carpentry, electrical, plumbing ,and sanitation.  (5)

• Scientific studies show that the teenage brain in less-developed then initially believed.  This leads many to believe that state governments should reconsider what they deem a "juvenile" and an "adult." (7)
• "Brain researchers, using MRI technology, have found the frontal lobe of the brain, which controls planning, impulsiveness and the ability to anticipate consequences and react accordingly, doesn't fully develop until the early 20s. That means kids may be less capable than adults of appreciating consequences and weighing options, and may rely more on the emotional parts of the brain when making decisions. " (7)

• It can then be implied that 15, 16, and 17 year olds should not be held fully for their actions, as their still developing brain doesn’t allow them to think their decisions and actions through completely. (7)

• Kids are not able to serve on a jury, drive, or buy alcohol until they reach the legal age of adulthood; however, in the criminal justice system, they are being tried as adults in a court of law.  Why doesn’t this distinction between children and adults apply universally throughout the legal system?

http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTLszkj5doLb6xGsL037sGEOfSarX2gVk3wqQfNzc2nRreFwzHDGyOFfUa-Q6yqdF4KBNOKOKifgBdq3JHuFvUe9RY7hZ9cR7IKGsI8jyBrg23jMAKfxkwgq1ZfgJfWkpfMe53vMBTlQym/s400/juvenile-criminals.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.leewind.org/2009/05/hope-part-1-teenage-boys-in-jail-what.html&usg=__l01ENdtuO0vwtBXAFvcMwbe0jGk=&h=231&w=400&sz=19&hl=en&start=18&sig2=ecrjGEbEYnWHFELER7LNkw&zoom=1&tbnid=yoqp3LYFWK6M_M:&tbnh=148&tbnw=213&ei=_aOfTNinL8SBlAfJrtDHCg&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dteenage%2Bcriminals%26um%3D1%26hl%3Den%26sa%3DN%26rls%3Dcom.microsoft:en-us:IE-SearchBox%26biw%3D1259%26bih%3D615%26tbs%3Disch:10%2C325&um=1&itbs=1&iact=hc&vpx=374&vpy=334&dur=6150&hovh=170&hovw=296&tx=169&ty=139&oei=9KOfTLe-DsOblgfzwqnRCQ&esq=2&page=2&ndsp=18&ved=1t:429,r:7,s:18&biw=1259&bih=615

Research Questions

1. Should juvenile criminal offenders be sentenced to serve time in jail for a non-violent crime?

2. Does sentencing juvenile offender to prison for non-violent crimes classify as cruel and unusual punishment?
3. What are other forms of criminal punishment for violent juvenile offenders, besides prison (or at least prison for life)?

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Preliminary Research Paragraph

Book:  Black and White, by Paul Volponi

Topic:  Racial inequality in the American criminal justice system

Search Terms: 

1.      Racial Profiling

2.      The Constitution and Racial Profiling

3.      “Race and Crime in the United States”

4.      Inner City Crime

5.      Race and Law

6.      Racism in the Criminal Justice System

7.      “Social Issues in America”

Racial Inequality in the Criminal Justice System

      In Black and White, by Paul Volponi, the main characters, Eddie and Marcus, experience the issue of inequality in the American criminal justice system firsthand.  In Black and White, Eddie Russo and Marcus Brown commit the same crime, yet Marcus is sentenced to serve time in jail, while Eddie is not (this can be assumed, based on what was said in the book).  Racial inequality in the American criminal justice system is a pressing issue in this nation.  The justice system in this nation was not created to punish individuals based on race, or any other physical characteristic.  The future of criminals is to be decided simply based on if they are guilty or not guilty.  I know that African American citizens make up about forty percent of the all criminals in the United States.  I also know that incorporating race into the justice system in wrong, based on the values and ideals this nation was founded on.  I know that citizens of this country are working to put an end to this issue in our country.  According to the United States Bureau of Justice, there were, “3,042 black male prisoners per 100,000 black males in the United States, compared to 1,261 Hispanic male prisoners per 100,000 Hispanic males and 487 white male prisoners per 100,000 white males,” in 2006 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Racial_inequality_in_the_American_criminal_justice_system).  Though the government has outlawed racist practices in society, such as segregation, racism still exists today.  The African American race is the most common race to be convicted for violent crimes; “African Americans were arrested more than any other race for murder in 2008, making up 36% of all arrests” (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Race_and_crime_in_the_United_States).  This is important to me because, from both a social and religious standpoint, I believe that all people in this world should be equal and therefore be treated as such.

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Pen Pal Letter to Character

Dear Marcus,

                        My name is Travis N., and over the summer, I read about you in Black and White by Paul Volponi.  I am a freshman at the John Carroll School in Bel Air, Maryland.  I live in Aberdeen, Maryland, where I have been for almost seven years.  This summer, I vacationed in Kure Beach, North Carolina, as well as Ocean City, Maryland.  I had so much fun at both of these places.  High school at John Carroll has been very exciting so far.  This year, I am running cross country and playing the trumpet in the school marching band.

            I thoroughly enjoyed learning about you in Black and White.  The first chapter of the novel was really intense, as it described the first of the two robberies that you and Eddie committed.  To be honest, my first impression of you was not that great, and I will tell you that it shaped the way I viewed you and your thoughts throughout a lot of the book.  However, over time, that really did change.  The loyalty you showed to Eddie, your best friend, blew me away.  Even through arrest, jail, and a trial, you exemplified wholesome and mature qualities.  I have mixed thoughts about you not telling the police about Eddie’s involvement in the robberies.  Yes, I understand, that, through thick and thin, Black and White are supposed to “have each other’s backs”; however, in a situation where the law has been broken, I believe that the truth should be told, under any condition. 

            I really liked Paul Volponi’s writing style in this particular novel.  I thought that switching between your side of the story and Eddie’s side of the story was genius.  This way, I, the reader, could get a taste of what each character was thinking throughout the book.  I thought that you were very realistic to me while I was reading Black and White.  In fact, I will go as far as to say that every person and every scenario that was described in the novel could have most definitely been real.  The issues written about in the book, violence and racial inequality in the criminal justice system, both exist in our world today.

            I wanted to ask you if, deep down, you wanted to tell the police about Eddie’s involvement in those robberies.  You said in the book that you “had Eddie’s back.”  Does this statement go so far that it protects Eddie from the police, from going to trial, and, ultimately, from the law?  Personally, I don’t think it does.  Your family’s reaction to your fate in court truly touched me.  I loved how the bond you shared with your sister and mother was so strong, that even going to prison couldn’t break it.  I really admire that. 

            I was already aware of the issues spoken of in the story, however, reading about their effects on people at a personal level really made me think harder about them.  People today work endlessly to help stop violence in their communities, in their nation, and in their world.  I think that if people really stop and think about these issues, a difference can be made.  Every human being on this earth is part of something bigger.  We are all part of a global community.  To better ourselves and our community, we must all work to put an end to these issues in our world.  This book has definitely left me thinking more about these issues.  While reading this book, it felt like I was becoming rather close to the characters, including you.  To watch you, Eddie, and both of your families go through this was terrible.  This novel has truly affected me in a lasting way.

            I hope you make a great life for yourself once you finish serving our time in prison.  I just want you to know that I believe everyone gets a second chance.  I hope that when you read this, you know that your story has changed so many people in this world.  I know it will continue to do so in years to come.  Good luck Marcus.

                                                                                         Sincerely,

                                                                                                       Travis N.