Juvenile Justice: US Supreme Court Decisions (Essay Sample)

Juvenile Justice
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Juvenile Justice: US Supreme Court decisions
It is rare for issues relating to the juvenile delinquency to appear before the Supreme Court of U.S. starting late 1960’s however, Supreme Court has decided a number of cases which has dramatically challenged and changed the procedures as well as the character of U.S juvenile justice system. The Supreme Court makes many ruling on cases involving the rights of elderly, women, gays, victims and young people. Among the landmark decisions involving the constitutional rights of the juvenile includes Roper v. Simmons and also Graham v. Florida (Neuberger, & Fradella, 2013).
In 2005, the U.S Supreme Court made a decision in a five-four vote which stated that executing juveniles who was charged with murder before reaching the age of eighteen years was against the Eighth U.S Constitution Amendment. In one of the landmark cases, Roper v. Simmons, the Supreme Court decide to abolish the death sentence charged to the juveniles who were under 18 years. This case was about a 17 year old boy who forcefully broke into a home of a woman, he tied her up and then he threw the women in the river from the bridge hence committing capital murder. The state court had earlier tried the defendant as an adult and hence sentencing him to death. The Supreme Court ruled in favour of the defendant as he was a minor when he committed the capital offence.
In 2010, the Supreme Court of U.S made a decision on a case involving Graham v. Florida. Graham who was 17 years-old juvenile was initially arrested and later sentenced for committing robbery in a restaurant at Florida and during the robbery the manager of the restaurant was serious injured. Graham subsequently attempted a home invasion robbery where he had handgun thus violating his probation. A state court sentenced him into a life imprisonment without any possibility of parole.
Impact of Supreme Court decision
Graham appealed for the states court decision on the basis of unusual and cruel punishment as he was a minor while committing the robbery offence. In the landmark decision, U.S Supreme Court made a decision in favour of Graham by stating that sentencing juvenile into life imprisonment and denying him a parole for unharmed crime amounted to violation our Eighth Amendment of the constitution.
The decision of U.S Supreme Court on Graham v. Florida marked the beginning of a new constitutional principle in which the juveniles are considered to be different and the children are given constitutional rights of been treated different and this was opposed to a situation where the state chooses to or not treat children differently.
In the case of Roper v. Simmons, the Supreme Court considered several factors which include, the public opinion, state practices and trends and the legislative statistical information on the juveniles (560 U.S., 2010). Additionally, the court also took into ac...