Juvenile Capital Punishment Persuasive Essay Example

Capital Punishment is the maximum penalty a man can receive for a crime. Executions have been carried out in many cruel ways such as firing squad, lethal injection, gas chambers,hanging, beheading. This is why the law takes special steps to protect children from the consequences of their actions and often seeks to ameliorate the harm caused when children make wrong choices by giving them a second chance. Juveniles should not face capital punishment due to a lapse in judgement. 

There are many reasons why people are against the death penalty for juveniles. One reason supporting this view is because children’s brains are not fully developed yet in the frontal lobes. According to Lee Bowman, “The latest brain research has found strong evidence that when it comes to maturity, organization and control, key parts of the brain related to emotions, judgment and ‘thinking ahead’ are the last to arrive” (Bowman 2). This lack of judgment and thinking ahead can result in horrible mistakes with dire consequences. Bowman also states, “But it seems to take most of the teen years for youngsters to link these new cells to the rest of their brains and solidify the millions of connections that allow them to think and behave like adults” (Bowman 6).  Due to this lack of brain formation, most juvenile brains need to time to mature; therefore, capital punishment should not be an option.

Some argue that capital punishment is acceptable for moral reasons. They believe that it should be death to all who have committed horrible acts. In the Encyclopedia Britannica states, “Supporters of the death penalty believe that those who comit  murder, because they have taken the life of another, have forfeited their own right to life”(Britannica Online). However, this argument is not valid because the juvenile brain is not fully formed and should not face the same repercussions an adult would. Yurglun-Todd states, “Good judgment is learned, but you can’t learn it if you don’t have the necessary hardware”(Bowman 11). This shows that children can make the same mistakes adults make because of their lack of brain maturity. 

In conclusion, juvenlies should not recieve capital punishment under most circumstances. They are not capable of making reliable choices because of their lack of culpability. It is because of this, they should have alternative penalties which will allow them to get a second chance.