In the US, most children accused of serious crimes are treated according to the adult criminal justice system. The question of this is a right way to deal with juvenile offenders is a complicated one and has been addressed by many experts in the fields of psychology and criminal justice. While children are more vulnerable and impulsive than adults, they are also more likely to change. Therefore, the stringent measures, such as long-term or life imprisonment, should be reconsidered regarding children who commit crimes, and new ways to treat them might need to be introduced.
It is well-known that the brain of a child is not fully developed, and many children tend to struggle to control themselves, manage risks or understand the outcomes of their actions (Altintas & Bilici, 2018). As shown by the case of Greg Ousley, they may not even realise why they did the crimes. This does not mean that children and teenagers should be discharged from liability or punishment. However, since the mind of a child is still forming, it is very different from the mind of an adult.
Especially in cases when a crime committed is a first offense, the minors having experienced childhood trauma or have underlining mental health disorders, their mental state can be extremely fragile (Lane, 2018). The stressful environment of the prison is not only destructive to the mental health of such children, but makes it almost impossible for them to work on themselves and make sense of their actions.
Given all mentioned above, it is reasonable to suggest that children who committed violent crimes should get therapy. There is an obvious need for some kind of special program that would provide psychological help and guidance to such children while they are serving their sentence. The ideal scenario would be to also create specialized institutions as an alternative to prisons.
References
Altintas, M., & Bilici, M. (2018). Evaluation of childhood trauma with respect to criminal behavior, dissociative experiences, adverse family experiences and psychiatric backgrounds among prison inmates. Comprehensive Psychiatry, 82, 100-107. Web.
Lane, J. (2018). Addressing juvenile crime. Criminology & Public Policy, 17(2), 283-307. Web.