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Question: Are minors punished the same as adults if they commit murder?

Answer: It depends. Arizona Law (ARS §13-501) states that kids over 15 that commit 1st or 2nd degree murder are automatically tried in adult court. If the minor is 14, the county attorney has discretion to charge in adult court. If the minor is younger than 14, the state can still try to charge the minor as an adult, but they must first go through a transfer hearing and it is a judge who finally decides.

There are four basic types of homicide in Arizona:

Negligent homicide (ARS §13-1102);

Manslaughter (ARS §13-1103);

Second degree murder (ARS §13-1104); and

First degree murder (ARS §13-1105).

The circumstances surrounding the homicide and state of mind of the defendant create the distinctions.The most serious offenses are first and second degree murder.

If the minor is young enough and the circumstances warrant it, (there are enough mitigating factors) a minor who remains in juvenile court would have consequences until his/her 18th birthday. Arizona Law (ARS §8-341 - §8-342 - §8-343) lists the consequences which a juvenile court judge can impose.

If the minor is tried and found guilty in adult court, the sentencing statute states the punishment shall be the same as that for an adult (life imprisonment, life without parole, or the death penalty are the usual punishments for first degree murder (ARS §13-703)). However, if the defendant was under the age of 16 when the offense occurred, the death penalty is not available. See Thompson v. Oklahoma, 487 US 815 (1988).

The punishment for second degree murder can be found at ARS §13-710. All other homicides' punishments are determined by the sentencing statutes ARS §13-604, ARS §13-701, ARS §13-702, ARS §13-702.1, ARS §13-702.2
Comments
41 thru 45 of 76 comments
On 02/21/03
London from IN said:
I dont think thy should be triled as adulds
On 01/29/03
caitlin from AZ said:
every one is totolly right it is just going to screw up the kids whole life if you put them in jail you think you are helping them when you do it but you don't know what its like to even be a kid and growing up with pure pressure we all make mistakes let us learn them on our own with out your help.
On 01/23/03
Amanda from PA said:
Kids can be put on death row for things they mistakenly did.
On 01/17/03
April from WY said:
Call me an old woman, but children cant vote, smoke, have to follow parents rules, so why is it not the parents responsibility if the child murders. I understand that some children take advantage of this attitude, but putting a child behind bars for life, because of bad upbringing, or say it was good upbringing, well lets check society. Are bullies the same as when we were kids?? We need to really look at that issue before we slam kids in jail. Oh just because one kid doesnt let society rule their emotions and can deal with bullies doesnt mean another child with different issues will handle it
On 09/16/02
Katie from TX said:
I totally agree with you on that. It's probably the smartest thing i've heard on this subject so far.
41 thru 45 of 76 comments


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