Brainstorming: Reforming the Juvenile Justice System ; Jose

1.  Answer based on your article:

• Who is the accused? The victim(s)?  Where did it take place? How long ago?

The one accused was Jose at the age of 14 in 1998 for an incident that happened in an alley where a friend was killed, his name was not stated.

• What was the crime?

The crime that he was charged with was a murder of a friend that was brutally beaten to death by another friend while they were both drunk.

• How old was the defendant at the time? At the time of the trial?

The defendant at the time was fourteen years of age at the time of the trial he was fifteen.

• What were the charges?

The charge that he was faced with was murder.

• Was there any discussion in your articles about the background/history of the defendants? That is, were there extenuating circumstances (poverty, abuse, health, etc.) that may have influenced their criminal decisions?

Yes both his parents has problems especially his father which was a heroin addict and both his parents abandoned him. Then soon after he became involved in gangs and also became an addict of drugs and alcohol. 

• What did the parents of the accused have to say, if anything?  The families of the victims?

It does not mention anything about the victim or his family but his parents didn't have anything to say because they weren't and still aren't in his life.

• What was the outcome of the trial? The sentencing?

The outcome of the trial was that he was sent to juvenile hall until the age of 17 for pleading guilty in the crime also right after he had a psychological evaluation to determine how dangerous he was. Evidence was collected afterwards saying that he had little involvement in the crime but still was guilty for the crime. After he was out of juvenile hall he was released with probation to find a job or be a full time student along with leaving his whole gang life. 

• Was there some sort of public comment, outcry, or protest associated with this case?  

There was no sort of public comment, outcry, or protest with this crime.

• Since the sentencing, have either the victims or the perpetrators been heard from, and if so, how?

Yes after he got out after five months he obtained a job with local parks department and enrolled in community college but in January 2001 he was arrested for probation violation .

2.  Using the arguments presented in the articles in your reader, plus the ones I gave you (including the one from the Atlantic), examine the case that you chose...

• How might we take brain research into account in this case?

Brain research can be taken into account on this crime because we would research why he did such an act and if he is a danger to the community. Also, we can foreshadow some of the actions that can be committed in the future.

• Assume that at some point we outlaw trying juveniles as adults.  How, then, would this case change?

I think that this case would have changed by him not having an adult record at the age of seventeen but other then that his punishment would have been the same because the judge gave him a big break.

• Assume that at the time of the crime, the accused juveniles were adults.  How, then, would this case change?

If at the time the juveniles where adults they would have had probably a long time in prison and not they research put into him as they did after the crime. Also, the judges would have been more stricter and tougher on the defendant.

• Do you believe, based on what you've read about this case, that the sentencing was fair?  Why or why not?  If you were judge (or emperor), how would you have dealt with this case?

I think that the sentencing was fair especially because he was not the main person that committed the crime he was just a bit involved with it and it was the alcohol that made him not realize what he was doing until it got really violent is when they realized the victim was dead. If I was the judge I would have not given him an adult record but time in juvenile hall and probation yes.

3.  My last big question: What does your case have to say about the juvenile justice system?  What can, or should, we change? 

My case says about the juvenile court system is that even if the defendant did not commit the crime he gets that set on his record for life. That is not fair because yes he was part of it but he was not the one who actually killed the victim. This system can also be fair enough though with the sentencing depending on the judge and his or her opinion. I think that we should change that the charges that he was faced with don't move to his adult record especially if they weren't the main person. I can understand if it was the one guilty and really did want to kill the victim but in this case it was an accident that he did not fully commit.