Omar Khadr's Essay 'War On Second Chances'

The War against Crime

Research supports that teenager’s brains are not fully developed compared to adult brains. Teenagers do not have the same life experience, knowledge, or decision making skills that adults generally have. Many teenagers will commit acts that will not accurately resemble their values when they are older, and as such they should not be punished in a way that would affect them their whole life. Even teens who commit very serious crimes have the prospect of having a change in heart down the road. However, there are some teens who do not fit this mold, some who are not willing to accept what they have done and admit that they have done wrong. For the heinous crimes committed by teenagers not showing any kind of remorse or

knowledge of what they have done after the fact, they should be punished in an adult court.
Even if teenagers are not aware of the laws that govern society, and even if they do not agree with them, they still must be subject to them. An adult who does not read the fine print when purchasing a new car must still be subject to the regulations detailed therein. The very same expectations should apply to teenagers, for although they do not have the same life experience as adults, they are still subjects to the laws which have been determined by the lawmakers of this country (who are, as already agreed, more experienced and better equipped with decision making abilities). Teenagers should not be given a lenient sentence based on the fact that they do not fully understand the implications on the law that they broke, when it come to extreme criminal acts. The lawmakers who created that law brought it about due to the values shared by society, which also encompasses society’s teenagers. Therefore, teenagers must also adhere to society’s laws, because they were created by people with more experience to protect all citizens and residents.
However, as Sean Fine points out in his essay, “The War on Second Chances”, many teens are coerced or influenced by their parents or close relatives to do very harmful acts.

Omar Khadr was a perfect example of such a teenager, when his parents brought him over to Afghanistan to fight the Jihad. “Coercion had marked Khadr’s life from the beginning. At a time when most children cannot cross major streets by himself, he was obliged to cross the ocean to join the terrorist movement” (Fine 114). I would say that Omar Khadr deserves to have a second chance, and fortunately, he is getting that opportunity. However, there must be allowance in the law to punish some teenagers deemed to be irreconcilable with society. In the movie The Dark Knight by Christopher Nolan, Batman was at war with an completely sociopathic enemy, the Joker, who had the reasoning of a child, but with wholly evil intentions. This was a man who had no moral compass, no recognition of laws, no remorse. Unfortunately, there sometimes are people like that in this world. As the butler, Alfred, summed it in the movie, “...some men aren't looking for anything logical, like money. They can't be bought, bullied, reasoned, or negotiated with. Some men just want to watch the world burn” (Nolan). Most people, most teenagers, are not like that. But there must be provision in the law to deal with every kind of

person.
The Omar Khadr's of the world should get a second chance because they have recognized what they did wrong, and were willing to make amends. The Juvenile Justice System in Canada is capable of dealing and helping people such as these. But teens that commit horrendous crimes while showing no remorse, and teens that commit crimes like an adult, should be punished as an adult. “Some juveniles commit crimes so horrific in their depravity that justice could not be carried out in the juvenile system” (Stimson). Current laws in some countries are such that they do not allow any provision for this. That is where the problem lies.