Nathaniel Brazil Research Paper

Should a teenager who made a critical mistake have to serve a life without parole sentence for one moment’s mistake? Nathaniel Brazil did and he is still in prison today. I agree that the majority of supreme court justices who passed the law making mandatory life sentences without parole for juveniles who commit first or second degree murder are unfair and even unconstitutional because they are still children which make them immature in all aspects. Their brains are still not fully developed, and they make rash or quick decisions without thinking about long term consequences due to this. To give a juvenile a whole life sentence without parole for a moment's mistake or decision that was made when they haven't fully developed or learned what

they need to in life yet just doesn't make sense. How can you determine the rest of someone's life when they fully don't understand the situation or what they did wrong yet?

One reason a sentence of life without parole is unfair for a teen murder is that they are immature emotionally.

Nathaniel Brazil brought a gun to school because he was sent home on the last day of school and missed out on the festivities and didn't get to say goodbye to his girlfriend. His emotions were that flared up that he decided to grab a gun that shouldn't have even been left out and then proceed to head to school and kill his teacher when he didn't let him back in class. “On top of everything it was his favorite teacher and he couldn't recall a reason for doing so and even looked very confused in his trial” (Thompson 1). These actions show that Brazil had no idea that his actions had no thought put into them. There were even protesters outside of his trial wielding signs saying “a child is not a man” (1). After saying that you can easily compare his actions to what an adult's actions would be and a normal adult wouldn't have been that upset over all of this due to adults being more emotionally developed, therefore making them more emotionally mature and developed. “On top of all this a child isn't even physically developed fully and you can only imagine what would happen to them being thrown in prison with grown men that have been incarcerated for years and years” (Garinger 2). It is a big shock even comparing the physical development of most teenagers to everyday adults as it is. Teenagers are teenagers for a reason, not

adults.

Talked about briefly in the paragraph before teenagers’ brains aren't fully developed yet in the frontal lobe, which controls mostly decision making and emotions. “Not only is the frontal lobe not fully developed it also shrinks during the teenage years and puberty due to the body focusing on growing” (Thompson 1). This is another point proving that it is unfair to give teensagers’ life without parole sentences because they aren’t equivalent in any way to adults , even in the amount brain matter and development. Teenagers have less development and brain matter so why would you honestly think of punishing someone for life for a decision they made at this stage of life and development as a human? “It is literally proved down to a science that teenagers don't have a fully developed brain yet” (1). Many papers on the teen brain have appeared in top science journals to prove that. “Does planning mean the same thing for a thirteen-year-old with a diminished capacity for controlling erratic behavior, as it means for an adult” (Thompson 2)? If you even have to question if it means the same because of a science of the brain proves it is not, then why would sentence a teenager to life without parole for a heinous crime as you would an adult?

Children and teenagers are very unaware of the long term impact of their decisions and actions as well.

“So what, then, to do about Lionel Tate-a kid who apparently still doesn’t understand that “pile-driving” fellow inmates is not a good thing” (Lundstrom 2) ? After committing a heinous crime at 12 years old Lionel Tate still couldn’t find what was wrong in his actions. If you can’t understand what is wrong with your actions do you really think it is smart to give someone a life sentence without parole? “In another week, he will find out who tucks him in at night. And where” (2). These children who commit crimes don't fully understand where they will end up , how long they will be there, what will go on when they get there, and how others will be effected from their actions. Adults being more educated, experienced, and wiser know this while children do not. “Meanwhile, in Texas, a lawmaker has had it. You want to throw the adult book at kids? Fine, says Democratic state Rep. Ron Wilson of Houston. Lower the voting age to fourteen”(1). If children can’t be trusted with the same things as adults and denied the same privileges because they are irresponsible and young then why would you charge them with an adult sentence when they can’t do adult things? You can’t give someone a life without parole sentence who hasn’t had the opportunity to even grow up and learn from their actions, let alone understand why they did something and the consequences of actions like

that.

It is unfair and unconstitutional to give a teenager a life without parole sentence. You can’t determine the rest of someone's life when you don’t even know the kind of person they will unravel to be. It is statistically proven that children put through the adult system rather than the juvenile system are more likely to become career criminals. It is hard to find the logic in determining the rest of someone's life when they haven’t had the opportunity to fully learn how to become a good member of society and learn what is acceptable and not. Children and teenagers aren’t fully developed mentally and physically yet and to treat them as if they are doesn’t make sense. They don’t understand their actions, or consequences of their actions, all this due to the brain not being fully developed yet. You can’t ignore the facts that truly prove why juveniles should not be given the mandatory life without parole sentences and if you can children should be given the same rights as adults in the eyes of the law for they will be tried as adults under the law.