What should happen to very young children who kill? Should it matter who is killed, or why? Do you think a child this young has the mental capacity for premeditated murder? If so, what should be done with him? Should he potentially be tried as an adult, as the article suggests he might? And if you do NOT think that an 8-year-old should be held criminally responsible for a murder, what should we do with him at that point?
As someone who represents juveniles, I’m fascinated by this subject, but I’ll leave my own views out of it–you can probably guess what they are. I’m more curious about what the layperson thinks.
He should either be treated as a child, or tried as an adult. If he is tried as an adult, it will of course be pointed out the he initially denied involvement then changed his story after the police interrogated him for some time without benefit of counsel.
My opinion is that no child should ever be tried as an adult. The trick is finding out where that line is, and we’ve done pretty poorly at it so far. No way should an eight year-old be tried as an adult. And yes, it matters who and why. With so little information to go on, my best guess is that either this kid is profoundly disturbed, or this nice-seeming family was harboring some dark secrets. Or both.
With an 8 year old boy it’s just as possible his mother told him to do it so he could come live with her. He may not have a rational estimation of what has happened.
Impossible to make any comments beyond the need to separate the boy from society until such time as he is deemed safe. If that is never then so be it. Would like to see him rehabilitated if possible.
I don’t really understand the point of cherry picking certain kids to try as an adult. If you’re going to do that, why not just try all kids as adults? There might be some benefit to making three different categories - kids, teens, and adults. But everyone within their category should be treated universally.
My first thought was that, whatever the circumstances, an 8-year-old can’t be treated as an adult. I begin by having problems with the whole concept of having a dozen majority ages, mind you.
Reading the article, I wonder whether there wasn’t an instigator. Was he the murderer, or the weapon?
Not that this would be the norm, but I have an acquaintance who asked her children to shove her husband out a 2nd story window, and they did it. One was mentally impaired and one was about 5 years old. So…it happens.
She lost custody of the children (but got it back).
It’s ridiculous to even consider trying an 8yo boy as an adult. No child that young ever premeditatively shoots his father unless he’s been severely abused. (Sadly, the only other witness to his abuse is most likely dead now…)
What are they planning to do? Lock him up in an adult prison for the rest of his life??
I think this incident, and others like it, is clear evidence that parenthood needs to be licensed & regulated, or abolished entirely. The two-parent family structure is inherently flawed and morally destructive; it is a far greater threat to our national stability than terrorism and global warming combined. DOWN WITH FAMILY VALUES!!! :mad:
I wonder if the police are wanting to press charges so that the defense council will do a thorough investigation on what the motives were so as to ultimately exonerate the kid. If they don’t fully press charges, there are a lot of factors which may go undiscovered & thus untreated.
If he was abused by his father & the other guy, he should be given all the psychological help & nurturing he needs, AND a medal.
KGS, what do you propose as the alternative to the traditional family?
Basically, humanity started as a tribal society – an extended family of aunts, uncles, grandparents, and other distant relatives all working together to provide food for the Tribe and raise the children. Modern “extended” families continue this thread, and people with deeply-connected roots to their extended family (especially Italian & Mexican immigrants) have a much greater chance of success than the so-called “nuclear” family.
I’m not saying the “nuclear” family is 100% bad – if the child is lucky to have two healthy parents (or even one), that’s good enough. Problem is, if one or both of those parents are extremely defective, and you must admit that some parents ARE extremely defective…it doesn’t bode well for the child at all. Get my drift?
If he gets tried, what happens to the notion of him being tried by a jury of his peers? Is there a legal definition for that? Or is it just people over 18? Or 21?
I said this in the other thread. According to the article:
What that may mean isn’t “lock him up in an adult prison for life.” It may mean, “there’s the possibility there’s something wrong with the kid, and shouldn’t be automatically set free at 18.”
I don’t know at all for sure, but convicting him as an adult might give the courts more options and control than just sticking him in juvie 'til he’s 18, then turning him loose.
I think the kid’s young life is fucked no matter what though. Even if there was abuse and the kid gets a nice, healthy, loving foster family, he still shot his dad and another guy.