Jr. High Student to be Tried in Adult Court… My Thoughts

The twelve year old charged with attempted murder after being disarmed by a teacher at North Scott Junior High School will be tried as an adult youthful offender a judge decided.

What that means is the juvenile will be tried in adult court and if convicted would remain under the supervision of the juvenile court until his 18th birthday. At that point the case would return to adult court where the judge could dismiss the case or continue the sentence in an adult prison. This according to the Quad City Times.

I think it's a good plan of action, although I hope this boy's sentence continues into adult hood. Kids brains are different, tweens tend to make decisions with the part of the brain called the amygdala. This can lead to decisions made by "emotions, impulses, aggression and instinctive behaviour" according to raisingchildren.net.au.

That said, this boys decision went way beyond making an impulsive, poor decision. He walked into a class room with a loaded gun, ordered everyone to the ground, and pointed the gun at the teacher's face and pulled the trigger. Thank goodness he forgot to take the safety off. In my mind it shows he put some thought into the process. In this case I think being a kid shouldn't get you a do over when your 18.