Thanks again SCOTUS, teen killer ineligible for death pen'ty
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JoeUser Forums
Yet again I'm reminded my the U.S. courts need much more attention from the conservative side, and could use many more conservative judges along the way.
Some of you may remember an earlier article that cried "oh to be 17 years, 364 days old" (or to that point) soon after the Supreme Court of the United States, thanks partially to Justice Kennedy, had decided for us that 18-years-old is the dividing line between when we can hold a juvenile completely responsible for their actions (try them as an adult and force them to face adult penalties for crimes they commit) instead of leaving the decision about whether a juvenile could be tried as an adult up to the local prosecutors and jurors to decide.
After that decision I was displeased with the direction our court had taken, especially since Justice Kennedy had turned to "world opinion" to help make the decision for him, leaning on the opinion of others in western civilization (France, Germany, and the rest of Europe) to tell us here in the United States that putting juveniles to death for crimes they commit is wrong and shouldn't be tolerated.
The problem I had then, which is the same problem I have now, is that there are certainly cases where under-aged individuals know the crimes they have commited and should face the harshest sentences for those crimes. I still hold that it should be up to the juries to decide when an individual is mature enough to face being tried and punished as an adult. I don't like the arbitrary dividing line of 18-years-old to be the deciding factor. Some juveniles are certainly more mature than others, and worse yet in my mind is that some crimes are certainly more heinous than others and the commission of those crimes should weigh more heavily into whether someone might and should be treated as an adult.
As an example in the case documented below, the school-aged juvenile was immature enough to let his concern over his fathers reaction to failing grades drive him to commiting murder. On the one hand, I would say that letting such worries serve as motive might convince me that the individual should be treated as a juvenile.... but, on the other hand, look a bit deeper into the methods and manner by which the individual did his dirty deeds, and then tell me why such a scheming and conniving individual does not deserve to face our harshest penalties?
You decide. Should someone like this be treated as an adult if our courts still allowed for that, or would his crimes be outweighed by youthful motivation that leaves you convinced that he still shouldn't be facing an adult penalty for his actions.
Original story snippet follows. Please see original for complete details.
Teen Accused of Killing Dad Over Grades
Dec 17, 6:20 AM (ET)
SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) - A 15-year-old boy allegedly killed his father, then set their home on fire because he was afraid his father would find out he was failing some classes, prosecutors said.
Ryan Watts was charged Friday with murdering his father, 50-year-old John E. Bruner, who was initially believed to have died in the fire earlier this week. He was charged as an adult.
Watts was arrested Wednesday after an autopsy determined that Bruner died from multiple gunshot wounds and not from the fire, Santa Clara police said.
According to court documents, Watts told police he took a .45-caliber handgun from a safe in his father's bedroom and stashed it in his room shortly before the killing.
Court documents allege he shot his father in the head at close range Monday, then set the body on fire because it was too heavy to carry to the backyard, where he had planned to bury it. Watts hid the gun and went to Taco Bell before calling 911 to report the fire, the documents said.
Watts' parents apparently were separated, and he had been staying at his mother's home since the fire, police said.
If convicted, Watts faces life in prison. He is not eligible for the death penalty because he's a juvenile.
Watts is expected to enter a plea during a Dec. 22 court appearance.
emphasis added
Note the emphasized passages. Sure seems to me that a lot of premeditation went into these actions. Enough to be tried as an adult? If I was on the Jury I'd sure wish that was the case.
Some of you may remember an earlier article that cried "oh to be 17 years, 364 days old" (or to that point) soon after the Supreme Court of the United States, thanks partially to Justice Kennedy, had decided for us that 18-years-old is the dividing line between when we can hold a juvenile completely responsible for their actions (try them as an adult and force them to face adult penalties for crimes they commit) instead of leaving the decision about whether a juvenile could be tried as an adult up to the local prosecutors and jurors to decide.
After that decision I was displeased with the direction our court had taken, especially since Justice Kennedy had turned to "world opinion" to help make the decision for him, leaning on the opinion of others in western civilization (France, Germany, and the rest of Europe) to tell us here in the United States that putting juveniles to death for crimes they commit is wrong and shouldn't be tolerated.
The problem I had then, which is the same problem I have now, is that there are certainly cases where under-aged individuals know the crimes they have commited and should face the harshest sentences for those crimes. I still hold that it should be up to the juries to decide when an individual is mature enough to face being tried and punished as an adult. I don't like the arbitrary dividing line of 18-years-old to be the deciding factor. Some juveniles are certainly more mature than others, and worse yet in my mind is that some crimes are certainly more heinous than others and the commission of those crimes should weigh more heavily into whether someone might and should be treated as an adult.
As an example in the case documented below, the school-aged juvenile was immature enough to let his concern over his fathers reaction to failing grades drive him to commiting murder. On the one hand, I would say that letting such worries serve as motive might convince me that the individual should be treated as a juvenile.... but, on the other hand, look a bit deeper into the methods and manner by which the individual did his dirty deeds, and then tell me why such a scheming and conniving individual does not deserve to face our harshest penalties?
You decide. Should someone like this be treated as an adult if our courts still allowed for that, or would his crimes be outweighed by youthful motivation that leaves you convinced that he still shouldn't be facing an adult penalty for his actions.
Original story snippet follows. Please see original for complete details.
Teen Accused of Killing Dad Over Grades
Dec 17, 6:20 AM (ET)
SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) - A 15-year-old boy allegedly killed his father, then set their home on fire because he was afraid his father would find out he was failing some classes, prosecutors said.
Ryan Watts was charged Friday with murdering his father, 50-year-old John E. Bruner, who was initially believed to have died in the fire earlier this week. He was charged as an adult.
Watts was arrested Wednesday after an autopsy determined that Bruner died from multiple gunshot wounds and not from the fire, Santa Clara police said.
According to court documents, Watts told police he took a .45-caliber handgun from a safe in his father's bedroom and stashed it in his room shortly before the killing.
Court documents allege he shot his father in the head at close range Monday, then set the body on fire because it was too heavy to carry to the backyard, where he had planned to bury it. Watts hid the gun and went to Taco Bell before calling 911 to report the fire, the documents said.
Watts' parents apparently were separated, and he had been staying at his mother's home since the fire, police said.
If convicted, Watts faces life in prison. He is not eligible for the death penalty because he's a juvenile.
Watts is expected to enter a plea during a Dec. 22 court appearance.
emphasis added
Note the emphasized passages. Sure seems to me that a lot of premeditation went into these actions. Enough to be tried as an adult? If I was on the Jury I'd sure wish that was the case.
