YMC - Juvenile Justice: Opinions

Prevention

Mical
When someone believes in his or her self, this individual understands that he or she is able to manage anything that work, school, society, or life has to offer as an obstacle. This individual understands their capapbility to focus and rise to great heights and aims to do so. This individual is empowered with the understanding of his or her great capabilities. And this mentality is what takes one to the top.

When most individuals commit crimes, they do it because they suffer a lack of self respect and self acceptance, which ultimately come down to a lack of self-empowerment. This goes especially for youth offenders. As a youth I understand that self-esteem is not something we're born with but something we grow up realizing we can have for our selves.

DeMarcus
I think when a juvenile commits a crime they should be punished but only to a certain extent. The punishment for a juvenile is now means much stricter sentences for petty crimes. Juvenile sentencing that is too harsh will mess youth up physically and emotionally, especially if youth are punished by being put into prisons with grown men and women. The government is kicking kids out of society instead of helping them change their behavior and giving them a second chance. I want to know why the government and the voting public continues to make these laws to send the youth of America into prisons and spends millions of taxpayers' dollars on building more jails instead of using them to better benefit today's youth. The money spent on sending juveniles to prison and building more prisons should be used to start up programs that involve kids talking about issues that concern them, building recreation centers, or providing funding for after school jobs that will keep them out of trouble.