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Originally Posted by lurkette
Actually, there are no states in which 14-year-olds are eligible for the death penalty. There are states in which juveniles can be tried as adults (which alone is disturbing, IMHO, given the current science), but below the age of 16 they are not eligible for the death penalty.
http://www.deathpenaltyinfo.org/arti...id=203#agereqs |
yeah, thanks for catching that lurkette.
I don't know why I said death penalty. I meant to say eligible for committing murder because I was discussing the inconsistency of how the law regards one's mental capacity to do one act (incapable of sex) in contrast to another (capable of murder)--not the punishement.
In the case of murder, or any other time a child is tried as an adult, the courts, and society at large, are very willing believe the individual can make a mature enough choice to warrant adult treatment. Yet, in instances of things like sex, cigarettes, school, alcohol, and curfew those same people and the courts will argue the juvenile is incapable of making mature decisions.
Once we factor in gender bias and homosexual taboos, it becomes apparent to me, and hopefully others, that these laws are less about morality and/or protectionand more about controlling the behavior of particular groups of people--those least able to defend themselves in front of the court system, a patriarchal society, and capitalist economy, usually.
I find it particularly interesting that people become so agitated over this particular case when so many sectors of our economy and culture revolves around sexualizing minors.