Is it right for a child to kill and not be punished as an adult? Adults get punished with death for a crime like murder; children murderers seem to get off easily. The jury is left with the ultimate decision, but the verdict is subject to stipulations sometimes. Many children are let off with hardly a slap on the wrist while committing the same crimes as adults who receive the death penalty.
             Children don't really know what they are doing until they reach a certain age and intelligence. The brain is not yet developed in the right and wrong instinct regions. These children should not be accountable for things they do because they don't know that it is wrong for them to do so. If the crime is as serious as murder there have been some cases where the parents have been punished for the children's crime. They are not given the highest form of punishment, death; instead they get a time in prison with a parole. (Lang 13-18)
             Once in adolescence and all of the regions of the brain are completely developed the child should be accountable for things he does wrong. These juveniles are aware of what they do and should receive proper punishment. (Hyde 20- 21) The victim's parents should be responsible for the type of punishment the defendant receives to a degree. The punishments are fairly simple: a sentence in prison, or the most severe and debated punishment in the nation, death. Children in this age group know what they are doing and also are aware of the punishment that will surely follow. (Landau 30- 33)
             Children with mental problems are treated better than those of a sound mind. They are given the option of pleading insanity. If the suspect was to give this plea, he is then admitted to and insane asylum and undergoes constant observation. The children go through counseling and a sort of rehabilitation. If this program is successfully completed the child is readmitted into the real world on the con
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