Tilted Forum Project Discussion Community - View Single Post - Why does the US gov. have the option to prosecute a 14yo as an adult?

snowy · 10-12-2007, 10:00 AM

Juveniles can be charged as adults in Oregon, because the voters approved Measure 11. Measure 11 "established mandatory minimum sentences for certain violent felonies, requiring adult trials and sentencing for those felonies for defendants over age 15" (Wikipedia).

So even in Oregon, you couldn't charge this 14-year-old as an adult.

A few years after Measure 11 passed, Kip Kinkel killed his parents, and then went on a shooting spree at Thurston High School in Springfield, OR, killing two of his schoolmates and wounding 20 more. Kinkel plead guilty to murder and attempted murder. Kinkel received a total of 111 years in prison during his sentencing, without the possibility of parole.

Kinkel, as a minor, was sent to MacLaren Youth Correctional Facility to serve the first part of his sentence. There, he was allowed to complete his high school diploma. He stayed at MacLaren until June 2007. Just short of his 25th birthday, Kinkel was transferred to the Oregon State Correctional Institution in Salem, where he will serve out the remainder of his sentence.

In Oregon, the system works (at least in this regard). Even if juveniles between 15-18 commit serious felonies and are convicted as adults, they serve the first part of their sentence in a juvenile facility for serious offenders.

Kinkel is currently trying to get a new trial on the grounds that he has been diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia and his lawyers failed to plead insanity, though he was exhibiting signs of paranoid schizophrenia at the time of the crime. We'll see how this all plays out.

The U.S. is made up of 50 different states, all with different laws regarding the sentencing of juveniles, so it's hard for me to comment on the case in the OP. Given that the accused is 14, I would hope that he would receive a sentence similar to Kinkel's--an adult sentence with ages 14-25 served in a juvenile facility.

10-12-2007, 10:00 AM	#19 (permalink)
snowy Kick Ass Kunoichi Location: Oregon	Juveniles can be charged as adults in Oregon, because the voters approved Measure 11. Measure 11 "established mandatory minimum sentences for certain violent felonies, requiring adult trials and sentencing for those felonies for defendants over age 15" (Wikipedia). So even in Oregon, you couldn't charge this 14-year-old as an adult. A few years after Measure 11 passed, Kip Kinkel killed his parents, and then went on a shooting spree at Thurston High School in Springfield, OR, killing two of his schoolmates and wounding 20 more. Kinkel plead guilty to murder and attempted murder. Kinkel received a total of 111 years in prison during his sentencing, without the possibility of parole. Kinkel, as a minor, was sent to MacLaren Youth Correctional Facility to serve the first part of his sentence. There, he was allowed to complete his high school diploma. He stayed at MacLaren until June 2007. Just short of his 25th birthday, Kinkel was transferred to the Oregon State Correctional Institution in Salem, where he will serve out the remainder of his sentence. In Oregon, the system works (at least in this regard). Even if juveniles between 15-18 commit serious felonies and are convicted as adults, they serve the first part of their sentence in a juvenile facility for serious offenders. Kinkel is currently trying to get a new trial on the grounds that he has been diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia and his lawyers failed to plead insanity, though he was exhibiting signs of paranoid schizophrenia at the time of the crime. We'll see how this all plays out. The U.S. is made up of 50 different states, all with different laws regarding the sentencing of juveniles, so it's hard for me to comment on the case in the OP. Given that the accused is 14, I would hope that he would receive a sentence similar to Kinkel's--an adult sentence with ages 14-25 served in a juvenile facility. __________________ If I am not better, at least I am different. --Jean-Jacques Rousseau Last edited by snowy; 10-12-2007 at 10:07 AM..